


I Like You

by eridol



Category: Naruto
Genre: Cross-Posted on Wattpad, Domestic, Dorks, Friends With Benefits, Friends With Benefits To Lovers, Kakashi's a better teacher than in canon, M/M, Multi, Shameless Smut, Smut, Unhealthy crushes, a lot of it, absolute himbos, found family trope, him and Iruka slowly become Naruto's dads, these two are complete fucking idiots, top kakashi for the mostpart but I think Iruka tops once or twice, weird dodgy relationship to friends with benefits
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-25
Updated: 2020-04-25
Packaged: 2021-03-01 23:14:48
Rating: Explicit
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 18
Words: 30,096
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23835193
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/eridol/pseuds/eridol
Summary: In which Iruka Umino refuses to admit that he has a crush on Kakashi Hatake despite the fact that he sleeps in the older man's bed almost every other night and thinks about him when he sees a cat in a tree.Alternatively, in which Kakashi Hatake refuses to admit that he has a crush on Iruka Umino despite the fact that he invites the younger man over for a rendezvous every other night and thinks about him when he passes The Ninja Academy on his daily walks.Most accurately, in which two fumbling fools can't handle their feelings for each other.
Relationships: Hatake Kakashi/Umino Iruka, Sarutobi Asuma/Yuuhi Kurenai
Comments: 29
Kudos: 190
Collections: Iruka and Kakashi Fics





	1. One

Iruka Umino hadn't known what he'd been getting himself into when he had tumbled into Kakashi Hatake's bed at twenty years old.

It had been the first day of summer when he'd gone there for the first time- There being a lake a couple of hours away from his house. He'd never been before, but he'd heard the rumors. Some said it was haunted. Others said it was cursed. A few even said it was magical. It wasn't owned by anyone in particular, just one of those areas in The Leaf Village that went unclaimed. It was free for public use, but despite that, no one went- except for one person, who Iruka was expecting to see there as well.

The lake was surrounded by an array of trees and bushes, the smell of pine fragrant and prominent as Iruka walked down the dirt road that trailed to the infamous lake. When he got there, albeit with some pine needles in his hair and leaf remnants on his hands from making his way through all of the verdure, he let out a sigh of relief and walked down to the large body of water.

He wasn't dressed to swim- no, he was only in his usual attire, minus his Chunin vest. Going there was pointless and he knew it, but he stood there anyways and stared at the sky above him. What wasn't covered by all of the greenery that made the land and loch seem so secluded was pitch dark, the only thing from it that was shining any light on the brunette's sunkissed face being the rays of moonlight that peeked through the leaves of the trees. Closer to him, bright yellow lights from the fireflies flickered all around him as he stood on the mud that led to the lake, his feet digging into the wet material as a small wave of water came up to meet the toes of his shoes before retreating back into the loch. The liquid was cold and oddly blue- not the dirty brown that so many lakes were, and not the pure clear of an untouched river. Just blue. 

Something about it seemed unnatural in his opinion. It was too perfect, too serene. There wasn't a piece of trash anywhere to be seen, no glass to cut his feet, no annoying birds to chirp their songs and ruin the moment of silence. It was just him, the fireflies, and the water- or so he thought.

Speaking of the lake being supposedly unnatural...

"Iruka-Sensei."

The masked man was standing a couple of yards away on the dirt road that led to the beginning of the lake, his arms crossed.

Kakashi Hatake. He was the only person who ever went there, according to all of the rumors he'd heard, so it wasn't surprising to hear his voice. Iruka had known that seeing Kakashi there would be a possibility- No, somewhere in the back of his mind, he knew that he had only gone because Kakashi would be there. Kakashi was always there, apparently, and he was... 

A mystery, to say the least.

Iruka wouldn't be surprised if the rumors about the lake being haunted by a ghost were because of Kakashi's mere presence there. After all, most of the village was intimidated by him. He didn't like other people, at least two of his friends had died gruesome deaths while under his watchful eye, his mentor had died shortly after, and he had been in the Anbu for years before finally being discharged for a reason that no one really knew. Supposedly, he'd get his own group of Genin to train in the next few years, which many people saw as a scary concept and an irresponsible move on the Third Hokage's part. Kakashi was strong, dangerous, and many people thought he was suspicious. Not a single soul aside from Iruka wanted to be around Friend-Killer Kakashi, and it wasn't out of character for the silver-haired man to use that fear to his advantage to scare people out of an area that he wanted to himself.   
As always, Kakashi liked his solitude, and he liked his space. He had been in his own little bubble for as long as he could remember.

But, Iruka wanted to pop that bubble.

"Kakashi," Iruka finally said something back, turning around to face the older man.

He wasn't sure what his obsession with Kakashi Hatake was. It wasn't a crush, no- rather, some sort of mixture between admiration and curiosity. The Jonin was a curious case, and one of the only people who'd ever taken a real interest in Iruka's personal issues aside from The Third Hokage, even if their conversation on that bench in The Leaf Village was very brief, it had meant a lot to him. Kakashi had just been transferred out of the Anbu when that had happened, and it had been a hot summer day, just like it was now. 

Opinions on Kakashi seemed to vary. Despite being a Jonin, and a talented one at that, not everyone knew who he was. Most of the people who did know of him either feared him or thought he was a murderer, and the few people who didn't think of him negatively couldn't seem to get through to him very well. Even outside of the Anbu, Kakashi wore a mask- both figuratively and literally. Iruka wondered if he could be the one to take it off.

"What brings you here?" The silver-haired man questioned, walking down the length of the road and to where Iruka was, standing next to him.

"I could ask you the same," Iruka responded, eyes trained on the water in front of him rather than on Kakashi. The water rippled, slow and gentle.

"No one really comes here and I like the silence. You?"

Iruka felt a light shade of red dust across his sunkissed cheeks as he crossed his arms, praying that it was dark enough for his blush to go unnoticed. It isn't a crush, he told himself for what must've been the millionth time. It really wasn't. Kakashi was just fascinating, and though Iruka had anticipated him being there, he hadn't really prepared for it. He didn't do crushes, because when he did do crushes, it always ended terribly. He'd become overinvested in someone who didn't care about him, and he didn't want to have to go through that heartbreak again. So, whatever it was that he had for Kakashi, it wasn't a crush- it wasn't romantic at all.

"I heard the rumors and decided to visit. The kids are out for summer break and I don't have any upcoming missions, so there's not much to do." He lied through his teeth, but Kakashi either didn't notice or didn't care. The silver-haired man was wearing his mask as always, a sleeveless shirt hugging the contours of his muscular upper body and a pair of sweats hanging off of his sharp hips, sandals on his feet.

"I see. I stay in that house I built when I'm here." He pointed back, and Iruka raised his eyebrows.

Looking to where Kakashi had pointed, he was a bit surprised to see a small cabin there- just a few feet away from the dirt road, hidden by some heavy foliage. The Jonin lived in a small apartment similar to Iruka's own back in the more populated area of The Leaf Village, so the brunette could only assume that this was a summer home of sorts. When Kakashi had built it, he had no idea, but it looked nice; a modern moonshiner's cabin that was made of perfectly smoothed pine logs, a Gambrel wood shake roof, and the occasional woodsy touch that could be seen all around it- like the small table and lawn chair on the wooden porch, or the warm-colored welcoming mat that sat before the front door. It was modern and convenient-looking, but simultaneously calm and nostalgic.

"Ah, that looks nice." Iruka went back up to stand on the lea, Kakashi following and sitting down in the soft, green grass. To his surprise, Kakashi sat next to him.   
"It's a long walk from here back to the main village," Kakashi started, and Iruka wasn't sure that he heard the following words correctly. "Wanna stay for the night? I could accompany you back in the morning."

"Are you sure? I don't want to bother you." Of course, he acted like he was merely trying to avoid inconveniencing the older man, but in reality, the thought of being alone with Kakashi made him nervous. Regardless of Iruka's immense interest, they were merely acquaintances, and such an offer seemed overly-friendly.

"I don't mind it. There's only one bed, but it's large enough for both of us."

There were the people who didn't know Kakashi, and then there were the people who feared him. Usually, lumped into the people who feared him, were people who hated him. Most of those in the latter category were there because of Kakashi's father, as well as his questionable past, but there were some who had managed to get into a relationship of sorts with the Jonin.

Or, there were some who had managed to get into Kakashi's bed. Iruka had heard the rumors about that, too. All of them said that Kakashi didn't take his mask off and that he would cut contact with them afterward. He would leave them hanging with their pride strung up by its neck and their hearts shattered into little glass pieces- men and women, civilians and ninjas, young and middle-aged, seemingly no adult who dared to be interested in Kakashi was spared. It seemed like the stories Iruka had heard were detailed enough to keep him intrigued, but not detailed enough to drive him away in fear of what would happen if he got too involved.

Any involvement with Kakashi was bound to be comminatory, hence why he'd lingered just close enough to see what was happening with the rumored friend-killer, but just far enough away to avoid being caught up in his webs.

He'd been doing that for years- even before all of the rumors about Kakashi had started spreading, but as smiled and nodded, he realized that all his efforts to be cautious had been deemed useless in the span of a few minutes.

The two stood up and walked together towards the cabin, Iruka pondering over how his interest in Kakashi had started in the first place as their shoulder began to brush against each other with every few steps despite them having plenty of room in the rural area to step away from each other.

The first time he'd seen Kakashi was during the attack that killed his parents. Both of Kakashi's parents were already dead and had been for years at that time, but he remembered hearing all of the rumors about Sakumo Hatake's suicide and about Kakashi's life in general, and as he'd been dragged away from the battlefield by a Shinobi he couldn't even remember the face of, he'd made eye-contact with a seemingly distraught Kakashi Hatake, who was trying to convince an older Jonin to let him get in on the action- probably so he could find and save his mentor, the only one he had left, Minato Namikaze.

Based on the fact that Minato and his wife, Kushina, had turned up dead in their efforts to seal the demon fox, Iruka could only assume that Kakashi was never given the chance to try and help.

The rumors got worse and worse after that incident. Kakashi was in the Anbu for a few years following, and he was either labeled as a friend-killer or a heartless Anbu member, so he wasn't necessarily reputable. Despite all of the tall tales about Kakashi's family, past, career, and relationships, Iruka remained intrigued. In fact, he thought that under all of the mysterious allure and hard circumstances, Kakashi was a kind person.

Maybe he was naive for thinking that way, but he didn't care.

"Thanks for letting me stay." Iruka smiled, taking in his surroundings as the two of them walked into the cabin, Kakashi shutting the door behind them. The living room was small and quaint, a brick fireplace that wasn't lit in one of the walls. There was a rug on the carpet and a large couch in front of the fireplace, a bookshelf that was messily lined with different novels against another one of the walls. 

"Any time."

Apparently, it had started to rain, which Iruka could tell from the small pitter-patter that he could hear against the windows. Part of him was glad that he'd gotten inside before the wet weather had taken over, but still, he couldn't help how nervous he was.

"So, do you come here often?" Iruka asked like an idiot, immediately regretting the way it sounded as him and Kakashi walked through the hallway that led out of the living room and past a couple more doors before Kakashi finally stopped.

"Every few weeks or so," Kakashi started, opening the door. He didn't turn the bedroom light on, but there was a lamp on the nightstand that gave the room a soft, warm glow- just enough for Iruka to see what was going on. The bedroom itself wasn't very distinct- another bookshelf on the wall, a bed in one of the corners with a trash basket and a nightstand right next to it. The floors were wooden and reddish-brown, the ceiling and the walls the exact same. The sheets and pillows on the bed were a dark grey, while the comforter that laid on top of them was a velvety red. Despite its plainness, for whatever reason, the room had Iruka feeling romantic- a feeling that he desperately tried to ignore. "But really, why are you here?"

"I thought I answered that earlier," Iruka muttered, sitting down on the edge of the bed. He wasn't sure why he'd sat down, and he certainly wasn't sure why his heart was drumming against his chest like it was trying to escape. The tension that had suddenly filled the room was palpable and growing incrementally. For a second, Iruka questioned whether or not that was just him, but he was quickly snapped out of his thoughts by Kakashi sitting down on the bed- right next to him, so close that their thighs were always touching. "I heard the rumors and decided to come check it out."

"Right," Kakashi rolled his eyes, reaching over and placing a hand on the brunette's thigh. Iruka was barely able to keep himself from jumping at the touch. "You're totally the type of person to come check out some rumored-to-be-scary lake just because you're bored when you could be doing something productive back in the village."

It was obvious that Kakashi's words were meant sarcastically. Iruka found himself pouting, clenching his fists as he looked off to the side. "I'm an adult and I can do what I want. I don't see why you're so curious about what I'm doing here."

Kakashi only laughed, his hand trailing up further.

Was he trying to make a move? What was happening? Iruka tried his best to stay calm, to not act on the thoughts that were bouncing around in the back of his mind, but he just couldn't help himself-

Before Iruka could think better of it, he threaded his fingers through Kakashi's silvery hair and pulled the older man closer. Kakashi, fumbling with his hands, yanked his mask all the way down before slamming his lips against the brunette's.

Apparently, the rumor about Kakashi keeping his mask on during sex wasn't true.

Hopefully, the rumor about Kakashi cutting people off after sex wasn't true, either.

Iruka began to kiss back, Kakashi tipping forward and settling on top of the brunette, pressing his lips up against Iruka's eagerly and delving into the younger man's mouth with his tongue. Moaning into it, the Chunin rested one hand on Kakashi's shoulder and tilted his head back when the Jonin's lips were retracted from his, only to be placed on his neck.

Kakashi's knees were resting in between his legs as the silver-haired man slowly began pushing him down onto the bed. Iruka laid on his back, allowing Kakashi's lips to trail down his neck before the Jonin's rough hands were reaching up to start taking his clothes off one by one; his shirt, pants, and shoes were all on the ground within seconds. 

"You sure you're okay with this? With me, I mean? We can stop if you want."

Logically, he knew that he should stop this and prevent himself from complicating whatever their relationship was. Physically, his body felt hot all over, and Kakashi looked particularly ethereal looming over him like that.

"I'm good, you're good. Stop worrying so much."

The rest of the ordeal was relatively silent, for the most part.

Kakashi quickly shed his own clothes and got rid of Iruka's boxers, all of those items being tossed somewhere across the room, cluttering the otherwise clean cabin floors.   
Still on top of Iruka, he reached into one of the drawers of the nightstand and pulled out a bottle of lube, rushing to pour some onto the fingers on one hand. Kakashi looked him in the eye, almost as if asking for permission, and Iruka nodded. The silver-haired man lubed up his cock first and then used his slick fingers to gently prod at the brunette's entrance before pushing one in, which was followed by a second, and then a third.

It was different than when he touched himself, Iruka thought. Kakashi's fingers were rougher, longer, and much more skilled, and as the Jonin crooked them and steadily thrust them in and out, he struggled to bite back a moan.

Unsure of where he was supposed to put his hands, he simply kept them above his head on the pillow, gently moving his hips back against Kakashi's fingers. It felt good, so fucking good, but he wanted to get on with it and he knew that Kakashi was just trying to tease him.

Finally, Kakashi pulled his fingers out and used one hand to grab both of Iruka's wrists, pinning them onto the bed above the brunette and settling between his legs. The silver-haired man positioned his cock at Iruka's entrance, so he spread his legs to accommodate, already knowing he'd have bruises on his inner-thighs in the morning when the outside of Kakashi's hips brushed against the soft skin.

When Kakashi initially pushed into him, Iruka hadn't been sure of how to react. The stretch definitely burned, and there was a low, dull, pain to it, but for whatever reason, he wanted it so fucking bad, and with each second that passed, it started to feel better- more pleasurable. He wiggled his hips in an attempt to get the older man to move, only receiving a teasing chuckle in return.

Then, he looked up at Kakashi's face. It was weird to see him without his mask, and his face was surprisingly normal. Of course, there was the scar across his left eye, but Iruka had a rather noticeable scar as well, so he didn't think it was too abnormal. There was a beauty mark an inch or two below Kakashi's lips, and the older man's hair was free to obscure some of his dark eyes since it wasn't being kept back by his headband like it usually was.

Quickly, almost as if he was avoiding Iruka's stare, the silver-haired man buried his face in the brunette's neck. The smell of Kakashi's shampoo tickled Iruka's nostrils as the Jonin's surprisingly soft lips were pressed against his throat, leaving light hickeys and butterfly kisses. Iruka settled for a moment, allowing his head to rest back against the pillow, his chocolate-hued hair fanning out around his head like a halo. If he was being honest, he wasn't even sure of when his hair tie had come out. 

He was still on his back with his arms pinned above his head, but he wrapped his legs around Kakashi's waist to gain some leverage, digging his heels into the bottom of the older man's back. Unsure of how to handle all of the sensations at once, Iruka bit his bottom lip to suppress the embarrassing noises that threatened to slip out. 

"I wanna hear you," Kakashi murmured, trailing his kisses further up Iruka's neck and tightening his grip on the brunette's wrists. "Don't do that."

Slowly, he allowed his lips to fall open, a small moan leaving from in between them. Kakashi pulled back from his neck, looking down at him and offering a small smile at the sound.  
With that, Kakashi pulled about halfway out before pushing back in, which had Iruka letting out a choked gasp. The pressure and the friction were already too much even though they'd just started, and he found himself focusing on the situation as Kakashi started fucking into his pliant body. Upon growing used to the feeling, his body began to respond, his orgasm quickly building up in his lower abdomen like a chord that was about to snap.

The hand that had been keeping his wrists pinned down moved down to the Chunin's hard cock, steady fingers wrapping around the base and moving. With every flick of Kakashi's wrist, he found himself growing closer and closer to his climax, back arching off of the bed and into the Jonin's touch.

Throwing his pride away, Iruka decided that he couldn't help himself. He wanted to cum, and he was so close, so he lifted himself up on his elbows and picked up the pace of his hips, rocking them back into Kakashi's in time with the older man's movements. Finally, one particularly sharp thrust hit a spot that made him keen. Iruka's body froze in place, legs trembling with the force of his orgasm as he felt himself clench down around the older man's cock. He came on his own stomach with a low moan, tossing his head back and accidentally slamming it against the headboard of the bed. Still overcome by his own pleasure, the pain didn't affect him as much as it probably should have.

Kakashi pulled out a few seconds after, face uncharacteristically euphoric as he came on the brunette's tan, scarred midsection. The Jonin's eyes were screwed shut, inky lashes fluttering against his cheeks, plump lips closed tight to prevent him from letting out the moan that Iruka could hear in the back of his throat. 

Iruka's heart stopped at the sight, and despite how he continued to tell himself It's not a crush, I don't like him, a more desperate part of him wanted to live in that moment forever.  
A few seconds passed, and neither of them moved, the only sound in the room being that of their steady pants as their chests rose and fell with the struggle to calm their beating hearts and rapid breath. Finally, Kakashi got off of him and settled his weight on the other side of the mattress, which made the plushy material shift with a light creak. He grabbed a Kleenex from the night table and used it to wipe Iruka's stomach, throwing it away and turning back around, pulling the fluffy blankets over both of them.

Letting out a sigh, Iruka flopped down onto the bed and pulled the covers up to his chest, still trying to calm down. Kakashi's legs brushed against his, and Iruka mulled over how warm it was- Kakashi's body heat, the sex, the cabin, the atmosphere in general. Even with the rain still pouring outside, and even with his typically cold body, Iruka felt warm and content. It was more comfortable than his own bed, he thought. He glanced over at Kakashi, hoping that the silver-haired man would say something to him, but of course, he was already facing away from Iruka, asleep.

Iruka's heart swelled at the sight of Kakashi sleeping, uncharacteristically relaxed as soft snores left his mouth.

Still, though, he was sure to remind himself that this was just an impulse thing- a heat of the moment session that he would regret later because Kakashi would probably cut him off like everyone else.

'I don't like him,' He thought, desperately trying to ignore the rapid thumping of his heart against his chest.

What a fucking mess.


	2. Two

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kakashi Hatake has convinced himself that he isn't in love with Iruka Umino, but despite his usual pattern of cutting people off after having one-night-stands with them, he finds that he can't do the same with the brunette. So, he decides to strike a deal instead.

Kakashi Hatake let out a small sigh as he walked out of the bathroom and into the bedroom of his cabin, looking at himself in the small mirror that was hung on the door. He'd woken up at seven in the morning, and though it had been nearly five hours since then, the man he'd slept with the night before, Iruka Umino, was still sleeping peacefully in his bed.

Kakashi figured that the younger man must've needed the rest. The Ninja Academy had just hosted its graduation exams before ending the school year, and considering how much work Iruka put into those, he was probably tired. 

Deciding to let Iruka sleep, Kakashi had washed the clothes that the Chunin had left on his floor, dried them, and folded them to place on his bathroom counter so he'd be able to take a shower and have something to change into when he woke up.

He'd already had the chance to shower and get dressed, so his appearance was pretty typical; the same headband around his forehead and over his left eye, the same mask on his face, the same uniform. 

Able to see Iruka's sleeping form in the corner of the mirror, Kakashi thought back to what had happened last night, and about Iruka in general.  
He wasn't sure why Iruka was at the lake in the first place. Almost no one ever came there due to the rumors surrounding it, and it wasn't like Iruka to show up somewhere because of some gossip... Maybe he really was just curious. Inviting Iruka to stay had been foolish, and making a move on him like that had been even worse, but he hadn't been able to help himself.

They didn't talk much, but they'd talked. When Iruka had first found out that he was going to be teaching Naruto, Kakashi had tried to offer a listening ear and give some good advice, but at the time, that was mainly out of concern for Naruto that he wouldn't admit to having. Though he wasn't allowed to talk about it, he knew that the boy was obviously his former mentor's son, so he couldn't help but care, even if he wasn't sure of how to show it. Iruka had seemed to take his words to heart. Kakashi had also helped Iruka on a couple of occasions when Naruto was really young and had gotten himself into trouble, but they hadn't talked much after that- only when Kakashi had to hand in mission reports.

Still, though, Kakashi Hatake knew his fair share about Iruka Umino.

Iruka Umino had always been attractive to him; a bright smile, sunkissed skin, chocolate-hued eyes, and a kind and caring personality, it was hard to resist his charm. Also, the brunette was kind enough to not talk behind his back and call him a friend-killer. It wasn't like he liked Iruka, of course- not like that, anyways. No, Kakashi didn't just like people. It was admiration, he told himself. He was mature enough to admit that Iruka was physically attractive. That was it.

Upon hearing the younger man stir, Kakashi turned from where he had been looking in the mirror to look over at Iruka. The brunette was just now sitting up, blankets pooling in his lap. He looked particularly stunning, the sunlight that poured in through the windows shining against his tan skin and bringing out all of the different shades of brown in his eyes as they fluttered open.

He looked a bit confused for a moment, but the events from the night before must've come back pretty quick because that confusion was swiftly replaced with an expression that Kakashi couldn't quite read. 

"Good morning, Iruka. I see you slept in late." Kakashi chuckled, gesturing to the clock that was hanging on the wall. It was almost noon.

"Ah, I guess I did," Iruka muttered, running a hand through his loose, silky hair. It was odd to see it out of the usual ponytail, but it was a sight that he could easily get used to.

"You can use the shower if you'd like. I went ahead and washed your clothes for you," He explained, watching as Iruka tossed the covers off of himself and stood up. The Chunin didn't have any clothes on, but of course, he wasn't embarrassed by it despite his normally demure demeanor. They were both adults, and they'd already slept together the night prior. "They're on the bathroom counter."

"Oh, thanks..."

With that, Iruka walked out of the bedroom and down the hallway to the bathroom.

Kakashi simply stood there, lamenting over everything. For whatever reason, he'd always been rather interested in Iruka. The brunette was the type of person who went unnoticed by most, but Kakashi wondered how someone who had been through so much and remained unappreciated throughout most of his life could manage to be so bright. Iruka Umino was perplexing, really.

The silver-haired man was snapped out of his thoughts when the bedroom door opened again, revealing Iruka, who had showered and dressed surprisingly quickly, even having his hair up in a perfectly neat ponytail.

"So, are you ready?" Kakashi asked, raising his eyebrows, though Iruka seemed to be confused by it. 

"Hm?"

A lapse in memory, Kakashi supposed as he thought back to what he'd said upon initially inviting Iruka to stay in his cabin for the night. 

"Don't you remember last night? I said I'd walk you back to the village."

"Oh, right!" Recognition crossed Iruka's eyes, and with that, the two left the bedroom, walked through the hallway, and left the cabin. "Thank you."

"It's no problem."

It was a calm day outside, the water of the lake reflecting the sunlight that shone on it. Birds were chirping, soft and peaceful as the wind blew, emphasizing the soothing noise of the leaves in the trees that surrounded them brushing against each other. The two men took to the dirt road that led out of the area of the lake and into the forest, walking the trail and avoiding the foliage that threatened to get in their hair.

"How'd you sleep last night?" Iruka questioned, and Kakashi took a little longer than he should've to respond due to the faint smell of his soap and shampoo on Iruka's body. It was nice, something he could get used to, but he pushed that thought to the very dark depths of his mind in hopes that it'd never surface again.

"Alright, you?"

"I slept fine," Iruka smiled, but then winced, and that's when Kakashi noticed that the brunette was walking with a slight limp- like he was trying to avoid putting too much weight on his left leg. 

"Are you feeling alright? You're looking a little worse for wear. I can carry you if you want," He offered without thinking much of it, though Iruka only shook his head and gave a reassuring grin.

"I'm good, I think I may have pulled something in my hip last night," Kakashi grimaced, immediately guilty as he remembered just how fervent he'd been. "But it's not that big of a deal."

"Oh, that was probably my fault. Sorry about that. How are things going at the academy?"

"Pretty good, for the most part."

"And Naruto?" Kakashi asked, watching Iruka's smile instantly turn into a frown. 

"The same as usual. He failed the exam and will be in my class again next year. It's normal for him to not graduate at this age, but I'm afraid he's not making much progress no matter how hard I try," Clearly stressed at the mere mention of it, Iruka rubbed the bridge of his nose between his thumb and pointer finger, eyes falling shut for just a moment. "I worry about that boy."

"I know you do."

"So, about last night..." Iruka trailed off.

Of course, he brought it up. Kakashi was almost hoping that Iruka wouldn't bring it up, but that would've been stupid to expect.

"What about last night?" Kakashi thought that he knew the answer to his own question. Iruka was probably going to ask why that had happened, what it made them. Usually, when Kakashi had one night stands- which was rarely- he slowly lost contact with the person. He wasn't really suited for relationships. All of the people he knew were too good for him and he was bad at commitment. He preferred to distance himself in fear of what would happen if he got too attached to someone and lost them again. And usually? He didn't care. He got over things like that pretty quick, but the thought of him just dropping Iruka after what had happened the night before- as brief as it had been- made him frown underneath his mask. "Look, I think I know what you're getting at, and I'm..." He sighed, unsure of how he should word what he wanted to say as he scratched the back of his neck. "Well, I've always found you attractive, but I don't want a committed relationship or anything. I do like you, though- as an acquaintance, or... Maybe a friend, I'm not really sure what I'd label us right now, but how do you feel about a friends with benefits type deal?"

"Like, sex with no strings attached?" Iruka questioned. He looked somewhat confused, his eyebrows drawn together and arms crossed over his chest. Kakashi couldn't tell if the look on his face was curiosity or skepticism, but he continued regardless.

"Basically," He shrugged, pushing his hands into the pockets of his pants and staring down at the ground as they walked in pace with each other. "We can continue doing what we did last night whenever either of us feels like it, but there doesn't have to be a romantic relationship involved. I don't like you like that, and I know you don't like me like that, so it'd benefit us both without making things complicated."

"I think I understand what you're saying," Iruka mumbled, looking off to the side and nervously running a hand through his ponytail.

"So?"

"Why not?" Kakashi had to suppress a sigh of relief at that. "I'm down."

"Cool," He paused, knowing that because of school being out for the summer, Iruka would probably have some small missions to complete. "Drop by my place tomorrow when you're done with work?"

"Yeah," Iruka nodded, cheeks dusted red. "I'll be there."


	3. Three

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Iruka Umino is antsy, ready to start his new friends with benefits relationship with no other than Kakashi Hatake. Unfortunately, both Pakkun and The Third Hokage have different plans.

Iruka Umino was painfully nervous as he stood on the doorstep of no other than Kakashi Hatake. The silver-haired man had invited him over for... Well, he wasn't really sure what he would call it.

A rendevous?

Liaison?

The start of a friends with benefits relationship?

Or, to put it in simpler terms, sex?

He didn't know what he was in for, but as he stood there, having knocked on the Jonin's door, he suddenly wished that the concrete beneath his feet would swallow him whole. When Kakashi opened the door, though, that thought went out the window, and he offered a small smile as the older man let him into the apartment.

"Hey," Kakashi greeted, pulling his mask down as they walked into the living room. Iruka gulped, face tinted red as he looked at the Jonin.

He still wasn't really used to Kakashi's face, but it was a nice sight, he thought.

"Hey."

They both sat down on the couch, and Iruka couldn't help but notice just how close Kakashi was. The taller man had an arm casually tossed over Iruka's shoulder, one of his thighs touching the brunette's.

"How are you?"

"I'm good," Iruka thought back to how his day had gone, and it was relatively boring. A couple of the C-rank missions included having him go help some parents with training and tutoring their kids, those of whom had either failed the Genin exam that year or had one to worry about the following year. He also had to help sort through mission reports, but that hadn't lasted long. "They didn't have much for me to do today- just a couple of tutoring and training sessions with some kids who needed extra help to get prepared for next year."

"Ah, that sounds nice. I can't imagine it's easy to work with kids, though."

"It's a bit frustrating, but it's worth it. You'll understand when you get your own team of Genin. That's why you were taken out of the Anbu, no?" Iruka asked, knowing that a few Jonin in the village had wanted Kakashi to be discharged for the sake of his own health. Supposedly, the silver-haired man would be in charge of his own Genin team in the next few years. Until then, he was stuck doing regular missions.

"Right... If I'm being honest with you, I'm dreading it. I feel like I already know who I'm going to be assigned."

"Is that so?"

"Sasuke Uchiha because of the fact that I have Sharingan in one eye, so I'll be able to help him utilize it better since there's no one else around to teach him how..." Kakashi started, gesturing to his left eye, which was covered by his headband. He took the forehead protector off and set it down next to him on one of the couch cushions, revealing both eyes. "Then maybe Naruto. He hasn't accessed it yet, but I'm sure he has an extra chakra reserve from the fox that he'll need help with. I know that the Ino-Shika-Cho formation has been going on for generations, so whoever's in charge of the teams won't alter that- I won't have any of them on my team, and logically, they'll probably go to Asuma since he's the only one stern enough to motivate those three. And then there's the oldest Hyuga daughter and Kiba Inuzuka, who I imagine will be on the same team since they both have sensory-related Jutsus, and another person with sensory abilities will be placed with them. That leaves me with whoever else is in the next round of graduates- hopefully, someone who can balance out Naruto and Sasuke."

"Hopefully..." Iruka sighed, leaning forward a little bit. The only other person he could think of in their class with an evident skill who could handle both Naruto and Sasuke would be Sakura, and even that wasn't very promising... "Those two are complete opposites in terms of personality and the only thing they have in common is their determination. I don't know who all will graduate next year, but your analysis isn't too far off."

"You know, you look good with your hair down."

"My hair?" Iruka blinked at the feeling of one of Kakashi's hands playing with the loose ends of his hair, which fell over his shoulders in chocolate-hued waves. He'd tied it up earlier that day, but he supposed that the hair tie must've broke- again. "Oh!" Without really thinking about it, he laughed and leaned into Kakashi's touch, allowing the Jonin to softly run his fingers through it. "Yeah, my hair ties break more often than you'd think. I didn't even notice, haha..." 

Looking up at Kakashi, he noticed just how close the older man was and decided to lean in, closing the gap between them, pulling Kakashi's mask down and pressing their lips together. The brunette deepened the kiss, placing his hands on Kakashi's shoulders to brace himself when the older man pulled him into his lap. 

Iruka thought he heard a scratching noise against the front door, but ignored it in favor of moving his hands to Kakashi's face, caressing his cheeks as he settled in his lap. The Chunin's eyes fluttered shut, his knees resting on either side of Kakashi's thighs on the couch and his crotch pressing against the older man's. He lifted his hips, about to start grinding down when he heard the door open. Kakashi pulled away without warning and turned his head to see who had opened the door, Iruka still frozen in his lap.

Unsurprisingly, it was one of Kakashi's ninken, Pakkun. Iruka had briefly wondered were all eight dogs were but hadn't questioned it... Maybe they should do this kind of thing at his apartment instead of Kakashi's, he thought.

"Pakkun, I thought I told you to stay out for a bit," Kakashi's tone was completely casual as he pulled his mask back up, grabbing his forehead protector and tying it around his head, tilting it down to cover his left eye.

"You did," Pakkun kicked the front door shut behind him with one of his little legs, walking up to the couch and staring up at him and Kakashi with dark, curious eyes. "I ran into The Third Hokage and he apparently needs you and Iruka for a mission. Speaking of Iruka, what on earth-?"

"Don't ask," Kakashi mumbled, and Iruka figured that it would be a good time to get off of Kakashi's lap. So, he stood up, averting his eyes from both Kakashi and his ninken, face burning bright red. "We'll be in his office in a bit..." With that, Pakkun turned around and left the room, going down the hallway. "Dammit."

"We can pick up where we left off some other time, yeah?" Iruka spoke, voice soft as Kakashi stood up as well.

"Yeah. What do you think he needs both of us for?" Kakashi questioned, running a hand through his hair. "It's a little weird to have both of us on the same mission considering that we're different ranks... Then again, you're capable. Maybe there's a shortage in Jonin right now."

"Maybe so." He shrugged, and with that, both of them walked towards the front door and left the apartment, Kakashi shutting and locking the door behind them.

Thankfully, the walk from Kakashi's apartment to the Hokage's office wasn't a long one, just a few minutes spent in silence. When they finally got there, they walked in to see Hiruzen sitting at his desk, looking particularly tired. Still, the oldest of the three managed to muster up a small smile. Iruka smiled back, standing next to Kakashi, whose expression was unreadable.

"Kakashi, Iruka, it's good to see you both. I'm sure you're wondering why you're here." They both nodded. "I need you both to go to The Sand Village, so I assumed it would be best to send you together. Kakashi, there's a scroll there that I need you to pick up from the Kazekage, and Iruka, I've arranged for you to have a meeting with some of the members of their Education Board to discuss your current curriculums. More details will be given once you both arrive, and when you do, you're to report to the Kazekage's office. I'm sending you together instead of separately so that you can assist one another. Can you leave first thing tomorrow morning?"

"I can," Iruka answered, confused, though he didn't dare question it. Their relationship with The Sand Village was and always had been a little rocky, but it was good that they were building a better alliance, he supposed. "Kakashi, how about you?"

"Yeah," Kakashi looked at Hiruzen, and then at Iruka. "Meet me by the village gates around five?"

"That works."

"Thank you, you two."

"Any time," Iruka smiled again, bowing. Kakashi did the same. "Have a good night, Hokage-Sama."

After that, they left, walking down the long corridors of the building and finally reaching outside, climbing down the stairs that led to the top level before meeting the streets of Konoha again.

"So, that's why both of us are being sent," Kakashi started, crossing his arms. "There are different missions for both of us, but he wants us to travel together for convenience and extra protection in case something happens."

"That makes sense," Iruka bit his lip as he thought back to what had taken place at Kakashi's apartment. Though he would've loved to go back and continue that, if they were really going to meet up at five in the morning to leave, they needed to go back to their respective abodes and get some rest. "I'm assuming you have to head to your place so you can pack, right?"

"Unfortunately, yeah," Kakashi, who looked particularly stunning under the moonlight, frowned. Iruka stared for a moment longer than he should've, admiring the different shades of silver in Kakashi's hair and the slight sparkle in the ink-hued eye of his that was revealed by his mask. "But I'll see you in the morning, right?"

"Right," Iruka grinned as they approached the road that they would have to part at, offering a small wave. "See you then, Kakashi."


	4. Four

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kakashi Hatake finds that he enjoys traveling with Iruka Umino more than he does with any of his other colleagues. Then again, most of his other colleagues don't make him dinner and ride him on the floor of a tent.

They'd been walking for about a day with hardly any rest, occasionally talking back and forth when they finally reached a good spot- one of the many forests that made up the areas between The Leaf and The Sand Village. It was best for them to stop now, eat a decent meal, and rest before they got to a spot where it was only sand. 

"We should probably camp out for the night and get some rest. I'll set up the tent if you start the fire and get dinner cooking."

The area they were in was actually quite nice, the trees around them providing some shade that sheltered them from the scorching heat and humidity. The forest floors were lush and grassy, and it smelled like fresh rain. 

"Sure," Iruka took the large bag he'd brought off of his shoulders, gentle setting it on the ground and pulling a few things out of his bag- a water bottle, packaged ramen, and a pot. Setting those down on the ground, he walked up to a dead tree and broke down some of the branches for firewood, then used some stones in the surrounding area to create a makeshift firepit, that of which he quickly lit with a small fire style Jutsu. "Things will be harder on the way back since we have the scroll to protect, so it's important that we rest while we can."

"You aren't wrong..." Kakashi mumbled, quickly taking the packed tent out of one of the two bags on his back and setting it up with ease a few feet away from the fire, thankful that it was rainproof when he looked up to see that what parts of the sky weren't blocked from sight by the trees were covered in grey clouds. Upon noticing that, despite it not having started raining yet, he thought he heard a boom of thunder. "Oh no. It's gonna start raining soon."

"I'll try to hurry up," Iruka held the pan in one hand right above the fire to heat it up as he poured some water into it, which was followed by the ramen noodles, as the water had quickly begun to boil. "Put on my rain jacket if you don't have one, I don't want you to catch a cold."

Kakashi smiled at the gesture, but shook his head and chuckled as he took Iruka's bag, as well as both of his, and put them in the far corner of the large tent before coming back out and moving to sit next to the younger man on the ground.

"Nurturing as always, I see, but no need to worry. I know how to pack a bag, and I figured it'd rain at some point, so I brought my own."

"Right..." Iruka murmured, pulling some wrapped, plastic chopsticks from his vest and handing a set to Kakashi, taking a set for himself as well. He used his own set to mix the seasoning into the ramen before taking the pot off of the fire and setting it between them. "Anyways, dinner's ready. It's nothing fancy, but it'll work."

"Thank you."

With that, they began to eat, neither of them really bothered by the fact that they were eating out of the same container since they'd already swapped spit before. Thinking back on that...

Kakashi let out a sigh as he swallowed a bit of the chicken flavored noodles, thinking back on the other night. After meeting with The Third Hokage, they'd went their separate ways for the night, and then met at the village gates in the morning and left. Due to that, they hadn't been able to finish what they'd been about to do on Kakashi's couch before Pakkun had interrupted them, and that was mildly annoying.

He was a bit frustrated, honestly- not even sexually. For whatever reason, he was just upset that he hadn't been able to hold Iruka in his arms a little longer.

And he knew that was weird, but he didn't dare think on it for too long in fear of the revelations he might come to if he did.

"Oh. We should probably get in the tent, Kakashi. C'mon," They had almost finished the noodles anyways, so Kakashi couldn't say he was bothered when Iruka grabbed his hand, interlacing their fingers. With his other hand, the brunette pointed up, and that's when Kakashi noticed that it had started pouring rain. He allowed Iruka to pull him into the tent, both of them practically tumbling inside, the Chunin zipping the front of it shut. "I'll wash the pot out when we wake up in the morning."

Both of them were relatively quiet for the next few minutes, pulling their own blankets out of their bags, kicking their shoes off, and moving to opposite ends of the tent to lay down. As the rain continued to pour, the temperature dropped, and Kakashi almost wondered why Iruka wasn't lying next to him before remembering that they were just acquaintances- friends, maybe. They'd slept together, sure, but that was only after they'd had sex. Would it be weird to ask?

Kakashi mulled over it for a few minutes, staring at Iruka's back, which was facing him since the brunette was turned away. Iruka was practically shaking, legs curled up and the blanket wrapped around him tightly.

"You're shivering," Kakashi commented, raising his eyebrows when Iruka rolled over to face him.

"It's cold," He explained, moving a little closer. Kakashi sat up. "Should've brought a thicker blanket, but don't worry about it."

"Here, I can warm you up, if you want," Kakashi chuckled, moving over to where Iruka was. He took his blanket off of himself and draped it over the brunette before taking his vest and shirt off and setting them down near where his bag was in the corner. "We never did get to finish where we left off the other night."

Iruka took his vest off as well and gave a sheepish nod, so the silver-haired man moved under the blankets as well, settling in between the Chunin's legs as he took off both his mask and forehead protector.

"K-Kakashi..." Iruka mumbled, voice somewhat quiet as he let his hair down and took his headband off, placing it and the hair tie next to his head. His shirt was next, and it was discarded somewhere in the tent as well as Kakashi got to work on the brunette's pants and boxers, pushing them down to his knees- just enough for him to have the access he needed. The heat of the blankets was somewhat suffocating when mixed with Iruka's intoxicating warmth, but he found that he couldn't quite mind it as he used his own spit to lube up the fingers on one hand, pushing one of the digits into the brunette's entrance. With his other hand, he held Iruka's quickly hardening cock, teasingly running his tongue over the head of it to gather the bead of precum that had gathered around the slit. He felt the brunette's body tense and decided to go for it, parting his lips to go all the way down and take the younger man into his mouth, focusing on keeping his gag reflex under control. "That feels so good... Fuck," Iruka murmured, shaky hands traveling down to land in Kakashi's hair.

Just for a moment, Kakashi lifted his head, the Chunin's cock slipping out of his mouth so he could speak. "Better?"

"Mhm." Iruka bit his lip, and it was clear that he was trying not to make any noise, which Kakashi could only roll his eyes at.

"C'mon," He licked his lips before giving a small pout and pushing a second finger into the younger man's entrance. "You can be louder than that. No one's around to hear us."  
Having said that, he returned to what he'd been doing before, sinking his mouth back down onto Iruka's dick and gently suckling, bobbing his head as he added a third finger into the mix and steadily scissored them.

"K-Kakashi!" Iruka moaned, breathless as he tossed his head back. Kakashi could feel the younger man squirming underneath his touch, but pushed his hips down with his spare hand to keep him still as he continued his work. "I'm gonna...!" He trailed off, but of course, Kakashi knew what he meant. So, he only went harder, hollowing his cheeks as he sucked and pumping his fingers in and out of the brunette's ass at a rapid pace, relishing in the way Iruka's hard cock throbbing against the back of his throat had tears springing in his dark eyes. A few more moments of this, and Iruka was finally cumming down his throat. Though Kakashi swallowed it, he didn't stop, only continuing to bob his head as he added a fourth finger. Iruka's hands were in his hair, gripping the silvery locks and desperately pulling at them as his breath turned heavy, voice whiny and pleasure-laced. "Fuck, that's too- Too much, Kakashi, I-" Finally, Kakashi stopped, slowly pulling his mouth and fingers away as he felt Iruka's legs twitch. He pushed the brunette's pants and boxers the rest of the way down before doing the same for himself. "Oh my God, you're evil," Iruka scolded, pulling him up by his hair and glaring at him. 

"So I've been told," Kakashi laughed, though that was quickly cut short when Iruka pushed him down and onto his back. The brunette positioned himself on the older man's lap, the blankets abandoned on the floor of the tent a few inches away. Kakashi blinked, propping himself up on his elbows and offering a lazy smirk. "Oh, my, who knew you could take control like this?" Iruka's hands were on his shoulders, and without much warning, the brunette was slowly sinking onto his cock. The silver-haired man let out a breathy chuckle, eyes fluttering shut as he tilted his head back and experimentally rocked his hips up into Iruka's. "You getting any warmer?"

"Yeah, that's definitely not a problem any-" One of the hands that had been on Kakashi's shoulders flew to cover his mouth, though the Jonin quickly shot the younger man a scolding look to let him know to drop it. Still, it was apparent that even without his hand to cover his mouth, the Chunin was clearly attempting to keep his mouth shut to no avail, proven by every little whine and whimper that escaped despite how tightly he'd tried to screw his lips together. Finally, Iruka's hands were on Kakashi's chest, and he was using what leverage he had to start a steady rhythm as he bounced up and down on the older man's cock. "Oh...!"

"You're doing great, baby," Kakashi praised, feeling his breath catch. The 'baby' had probably been far too intimate- something that he should've left out- but either Iruka didn't hear it or didn't care, because his pace only became more and more fervent. He's definitely going to be hurting in the morning, Kakashi thought, his mind going foggy as the brunette's inner walls began to squeeze around his length with every movement of his hips. "Just a little more, okay?"

With every second that passed, Iruka seemed to grow bolder, hands roaming Kakashi's body to use any part of the Jonin that he could for support as the movements of his hips became more fervent. Finally, he came for the second time, the hot liquid landing on both his and Kakashi's midsection. The older man groaned at the feeling of Iruka freezing on top of him, the brunette's ass clenching down and sending him in a frenzy.

Kakashi pulled out right when he was about to cum, finishing in his own hand with a low moan of Iruka's name as he saw white, the knot that had been building up in his body through the course of their session finally unraveling. 

"Oh my God," Iruka huffed, lifting himself off of Kakashi's lap and sitting down on the tent floor to catch his breath, dark hair falling around his shoulder in loose waves.

"Still cold?" Kakashi questioned, moving to grab a wipe from his bag to wipe off both himself and Iruka before lazily tossing it across the tent.

"Just a bit," Iruka answered, slipping his pants and boxers back on as he gently rubbed his own arms to give himself some warmth. Kakashi sighed in response, putting his boxers back on as well, though he didn't bother with any other clothing.

"C'mere," The Jonin got back under the covers, laying on his side and pulling Iruka into his arms, tangling their legs. Iruka reciprocated almost immediately, wrapping his arms around Kakashi and burying his face into the older man's neck. His nose was ice cold, but his cheeks felt like they were burning, Kakashi noted as he ran his hand through the younger man's loose hair. "Better?"

"Much. Good night, Kakashi."

Something about this felt wrong. His heart was beating against his chest despite how relaxing the position he was in should've been, and even as Iruka slowly drifted off to sleep in his arms, he couldn't bring himself to calm down.

What the hell was that feeling, and why couldn't he make it go away? Was he nervous? Excited? He wasn't sure. Still, he acted like nothing was wrong and offered a half-hearted smile despite the fact that Iruka had already fallen asleep and couldn't see it. 

"Good night, Iruka."


	5. Five

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Iruka Umino is relieved to be returning from The Sand Village- even more-so knowing that Kakashi Hatake will be by his side. However, through the duration of the trip, he finds that he's restless for a reason that he can't quite put his finger on.

The mission had gone relatively well in Iruka's opinion. Even though spending a day in The Sand Village to have a meeting with their Board Of Education so they could help each other with their curriculums wasn't his ideal picture of fun, it had gone well, and Kakashi had apparently gotten the scroll he'd needed, which was surprisingly small.

It had been tense and awkward, as things in The Sand Village almost always were, but Iruka was just happy that they weren't at war with each other. He looked over at Kakashi, who he'd been walking with for the past... Well, he wasn't sure exactly how long they'd been traveling, but it had been more than twelve hours and less than a day by his estimates.

Thankfully, they were starting to get out of the desert area, reaching another heated forest after miles upon miles of walking through scalding hot sand. There were trees surrounding them again, the chirping of birds, and a stream that was only a few yards away.

"Now, this is where things get hard..." Kakashi started as he took one of the bags off of his back, unloading the tent and setting it up with ease. "This scroll is apparently important," He turned to Iruka, placing a hand over his chest, which is where he'd had the scroll hidden- underneath the stiff, green material of his Jonin vest. "We aren't allowed to open it, obviously. We have to protect it until we're able to get back, and I would recommend rushing the trip, but it's two more days and there's no way we can shorten it into a period where we won't need sleep. So, I think we should do shifts. We stop here, and you can sleep while I watch the scroll for a few hours, you can do the same for me, and then we can continue."

"You don't wanna sleep first?" Iruka questioned, tilting his head. He was tired, sure, but Kakashi looked just as sleep-deprived as him if not more so. "You look exhausted."

"I don't mind," The silver-haired man shot him down, offering a small smile, which was hidden by his mask. The only way he could tell that the smile was even there was the way the dark material of the mask curved to accommodate for the movement of Kakashi's plump lips. "Get some rest, Iruka, you need it more than I do."

"Fine, fine..." He grumbled as Kakashi gave him a dismissive wave of his hand.

"Go rest," Kakashi said it again, his tone bordering on stern. Normally, Iruka would insist on having Kakashi get some sleep first, but he had to remember that Kakashi technically was his superior, and he was too weary to start an argument. "I'll have food for you when you wake up."

Shaking his head, Iruka walked into the tent, taking his bag off and pulling out a blanket to cover up with as he laid down on the floor. He allowed his eyes to fall shut, expecting to fall asleep instantly, but... No. Of course not. He was just exhausted enough for it to bother him, but not exhausted enough to fall asleep.

And, for whatever reason, his heart was beating out of his chest. His mind went back to Kakashi, and that only made things worse.

Iruka sighed, laying on his back and staring up at the ceiling of the tent. Kakashi had been acting weird since they'd slept together the last time- which, funnily enough, was in the tent- and it was somewhat unsettling. Of course, it was only the little things that Iruka had noticed- Kakashi avoiding eye contact with him, sounding a lot more tired. The Jonin had seemed like he wasn't really there, his body right in front of Iruka but his mind somewhere far away over the past couple days. It wasn't unsettling enough to be scary, but it had certainly caught his attention, and he was a little worried.

The Chunin tried to sleep, but his mind and heart were still racing, and as much as he tried not to think about Kakashi, he couldn't help it. Why was he suddenly so nervous about the entire situation?

Trying to focus on literally anything else, he listened to the sounds outside; Kakashi's footsteps, a crackling fire, leaves crunching beneath the Jonin's feat, birds chirping. Things went quiet for a moment, and Iruka raised his eyebrows.

After a few more minutes of laying there aimlessly, he decided that he probably wasn't going to fall asleep anytime soon and didn't want to waste his and Kakashi's time. So, he stood up and wrapped the blanket around his shoulders, walking outside of the tent to see that Kakashi had already set everything up. The silver-haired man was sitting on a long log, which was in front of a makeshift fire pit that he'd made, cooking what looked like two sticks of shioyaki- AKA fish on a stick. Iruka raised his eyebrows at that- they'd been traveling in the heat for hours, so if Kakashi had packed something like fish, it would've gone bad. Had he caught those somewhere around...?

Iruka sighed and moved to sit down next to Kakashi on the log, earning a questioning look from the older man.

"Sorry, I just can't sleep," He murmured, smiling when Kakashi handed him one of the fish and rested his head on his shoulder.

"It's fine," Kakashi shrugged it off, scooting a bit closer to him and pulling his mask down, allowing it to hang loosely around his neck. The fire that crackled in front of them emphasized his best features, its bright oranges and yellows highlighting his pale skin and bringing out the different shades of black and grey in his eyes. "But I managed to find food. We can eat, and then if we rush, we can find a civilian city with a hotel by the time we need to sleep. We'll be pretty beat by then, but it's not that big of a deal."

"Where'd you find fresh fish so quick?" Iruka asked, taking a bite of the food. It was hot, fresh, and tasted better than the junk they'd been eating for the past few days.

"I changed the Chakra form of my Chidori to channel it into my fingers so I could fry a few fish in the stream over there," Kakashi explained, quickly eating his fish and holding the skewer in his hand.

"That's convenient. You know I had food in my bag, right?" Iruka laughed, earning a small nod. Kakashi, who was looking more and more tired with each second that passed, allowed his eyes to fall shut as he practically cuddled into the brunette's shoulder. "Well, thank you. Want some water?"

"I'm good, thanks."

"I guess you did need rest after all... You're too stubborn sometimes. I wonder if you even know the meaning of moderation. With the way you act, I'm kinda doubting it." Iruka laughed, finishing his food as Kakashi fell asleep on his shoulder without a word. He took both of the skewers that the fish had been cooked on and set them to the side, eyes over the roaring fire as he smiled at the older man. "Sleep well, Kakashi."


	6. Six

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kakashi Hatake gets home from his trip to The Sand Village, only to realize that he can't stop thinking about Iruka Umino. Repression ensues.

Kakashi Hatake was beat when he and Iruka Umino finally managed to get back to The Leaf Village. They'd made their way to The Hokage's office to report back to him about how the mission had gone, not even stopping by either of their apartments first. So, Iruka still had his bag on his back, and Kakashi was still carrying both of his bags as well as they walked in together, standing side by side.

"Iruka, Kakashi, you're back," Hiruzen smiled, sitting up straight in his chair as he looked up at the other two men. "How did everything go?"

"It went well, Hokage-Sama," Iruka answered, walking up to the elderly man's desk and setting the binder that was in his hands down on the wooden surface. "Here are some papers that the Kazekage wanted you to see from the Education Board."

"And the scroll you had me collect," Kakashi picked in, also approaching the desk and pulling the scroll he'd been sent to receive out of his vest, setting it down next to the binder.

"Thank you, you two. I imagine you must be tired, so you can go home and rest. Don't worry about any mission reports until tomorrow."

Thank God. Honestly, Kakashi wouldn't have been able to fill out a decent mission report with how tired he was- not that he usually bothered doing a good job on them on a normal day, but still.

"Thank you," Both him and Iruka spoke at the same time, and then glanced at each other upon realizing they'd said the same thing at the same time, smiling.

"You're dismissed."

With that, they both nodded before quickly exiting The Hokage's office and leaving the building, Kakashi taking in a deep breath of the fresh air as the wind began to blow through his silvery hair.

"Iruka, how are you feeling?" Kakashi asked, glancing over at the shorter man, who was walking in pace with him.

"I'm good, just super tired..." Iruka muttered, and the expression on his face gave it away. There were bags starting to form under his usually energetic brown eyes, those of which seemed to be struggling to stay open as they walked.

"Yeah, that was exhausting," Kakashi said as they got closer and closer to Iruka's apartment, part of him dreading when they would have to part ways again, not that he let his mind linger on that dread for too long. He ran a hand through his hair, briefly looking up at the sky; bright blue, cloudy, beautiful. "It wasn't bad, though. I'm surprised that no one attacked us or anything."

"Me too," Iruka's smile grew as they walked together, shoulders brushing with every few steps despite the fact that there was plenty of room on the road for them to walk further apart. Suddenly, he felt the urge to reach out and hold the brunette's hand, but he didn't, only remaining silent. "Whatever that scroll was seemed important, so I was expecting at least one ambush. Guess we got lucky."

"Yeah, I-" Kakashi cut himself off, a blush taking over his cheeks at the sight of Iruka grinning at him like that. He was suddenly thankful that he had a mask on his face to cover it up- that and the fact that they'd reached Iruka's apartment building. "We did get lucky. This is your place, right?"

"Yeah. I'll see you later, Kakashi," Iruka waved, and with that, he was walking away.

"See ya."

Kakashi stared at Iruka for a little longer than he would've liked to admit, simply watching the brunette climb the stairs of his apartment complex with that charming smile of his on his face before he was out of sight. Realizing that he had been standing there for a suspicious amount of time, he shook his head and turned away, quickly exiting the area and walking to his own apartment.

Thankfully, it wasn't too far from Iruka's, and he made it there relatively quickly.

When Kakashi finally unlocked the door of his apartment and walked in, locking it behind him, he was happy to hear the voice of no other than one of his ninken, Pakkun.

"Kakashi, welcome back."

"Hello, Pakkun," Kakashi greeted the head of his pack of ninken, smiling down at the pug, who had appeared to be pacing around the living room and waiting for him to return. He set both bags down on the living room floor, too tired to bother with unpacking them or even cleaning himself up. "Is everyone taken care of?" He asked. Typically, he left them with food, but also with money in case they ran out so they could buy some- which was possible, as most of them were responsible and could talk, though it was usually Pakkun who was the most vocal and handled their purchases while Kakashi was gone. Still, even though they were capable and well taken care of, Kakashi couldn't help but be worried about them when he left for long periods of time. He'd been gone for seven days- three spent traveling to The Sand Village, one spent in The Sand Village, and then three more spent traveling back to The Leaf Village. "Sorry I was gone for so long."

"Yeah, they're doing good..." Kakashi raised his eyebrows as Pakkun sat at his feet, glancing up at him with his big brown eyes. Usually, the other ninken would be spread out through his apartment- on the couch, in the dog beds, in the kitchen, but... He couldn't see any of them aside from Pakkun. "Kinda taking up your bed, though." Ah. Considering that there were seven of them, minus Pakkun who was still in front of him, Kakashi knew that there wouldn't be any room for him in his bed. Still, even though he'd just gotten back from a mission, they all worked incredibly hard, and if they wanted a good night's sleep in his bed, he didn't mind. It would be an asshole thing to do to make them move, so he'd just sleep in the living room until they woke up on their own. "Want me to wake them up?"

"Nah, it's no problem," Kakashi tried to sound reassuring as he gave a dismissive wave to the concerned-looking pug, sitting down on the couch. "I'll just take the couch. You're free to join them if you'd like."

Pakkun quickly padded away, probably to join the other ninken in bed, and Kakashi sighed. Iruka was still on his mind as he kicked his shoes off, shedding his mask, vest, and forehead protector before laying down on his couch. He knew he wouldn't be getting to sleep any time soon and simply stared at the ceiling, his mind stuck on Iruka.

"God... This doesn't feel right. I wonder if he's thinking about me, too..." The feeling was more wrong than anything; unfamiliar, like every single bundle of nerves in his body was lit on fire. His cheeks were burning bright red, and he wasn't sure whether the feeling had gotten better or worse since he'd dropped Iruka off at his apartment. Squeezing his eyes shut and trying to get rid of all of the images of the brunette that kept popping up in his head, he swallowed. "I hope he is."


	7. Seven

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Iruka Umino and Kakashi Hatake hook up again, only for the brunette to come to the conclusion that their might be a small problem when he starts to wish that the silver-haired man had stayed with him afterward.

Iruka Umino had been relaxed as he stood in the shower, the hot water running over his back. Of course, that was interrupted by the sound of his bedroom window opening. He tensed, ready to throw some clothes on and beat the hell out of whoever was breaking into his apartment (or, if it was Naruto again, take the boy out for ramen) until he heard the oh-so-familiar voice that had been bouncing around in the back of his mind for the past few days.

"Iruka-Sensei! You here?"

It was just Kakashi. It had been a few days since he'd seen the older man- they had both been falling back into the gist of things after being gone traveling for that mission for an entire week. He figured he already knew what the silver-haired man was there for, so he didn't bother stepping out of the shower, nor did he bother getting dressed. Sighing in relief, Iruka decided to call out to him.

"In the shower!"

Unsurprisingly, Kakashi-no-manners-Hatake just walked into the bathroom, but Iruka only rolled his eyes and smiled, peeking his head out from behind the shower curtain.  
"Hi," Kakashi greeted, offering a small wave as he leaned back against the bathroom counter.

"Kakashi, don't you know how to knock?" Iruka scolded, though it was pretty half-hearted. Most people would be annoyed by Kakashi's antics, but honestly, the more time he spent with the silver-haired man, the more and more endeared he was by them.

"Sure I do," He answered with a shrug, taking off his forehead protector, mask, and gloves, setting all three on the counter. Though he'd never said it out loud, Iruka was actually quite flattered that Kakashi felt comfortable enough around him to take his mask off- he was pretty sure that no one else in the village had seen Kakashi's face. "But where's the fun in that?"

"Fair point."

"You wanna go to that lake with me? Not tomorrow, but the day after. I was thinking we could hang out and spend the night in that cabin."

"Sure..." For whatever reason, the thought of spending more time with Kakashi outside of the village was exciting, so he nodded. "By the way, you're free to join me if you want. I guess that's probably why you're here, right?"

"You've guessed right," Without another word, Kakashi slipped off the rest of his clothing- his vest, sandals, pants, and long sleeve shirt. His tight, pale body was on full display as he pulled the shower curtain the rest of the way back and stepped in, standing in front of where Iruka was and placing his hands on the brunette's hips with a small smirk on his face. "You look good like this."

"Kakashi..." Iruka couldn't help but squirm in anticipation as Kakashi slowly pushed him against the wall, his body caged there by the older man's. Their lengths brushed together, and Iruka had to suppress the urge to muffle a whine that threatened to slip out as he felt blood rush down south. Kakashi's movements were languid as he began to grind against Iruka, his lips traveling down the length of the brunette's jaw and settling at his neck, leaving sinful hickeys that he prayed would be easy to cover up. Just having Kakashi touch him like that despite the fact that they had done this a few times now still made him melt- still lit his nerves aflame; every little brush of Kakashi's hair against his skin, that skillful mouth leaving the lovebites he knew he'd be running his fingers over in a few hours to recreate the feeling, the way he chuckled close to Iruka's ear as he ground into him. "Fuck, I don't want everyone else who lives here to hear me, y'know."

"Is that a challenge?" Kakashi teased, and though Iruka was tempted to deny it, he didn't, only sighing as the silver-haired man swapped their positions again.

"It wasn't supposed to be, but I guess it's up for interpretation..." Iruka murmured, gasping as Kakashi turned him around and pushed him against the wall again, his chest coming into contact with the cold material.

"Iruka," Kakashi's chest was pressed up against his back, hard dick against his ass. Iruka hated to admit it, but he was getting so desperate so quickly that he was thankful that Kakashi decided to skip foreplay and prep. Instead, Kakashi used his own spit to lube up his length before pushing the head into the brunette's entrance and gently easing into him. Kakashi rested his hands on the wall on either side of Iruka's head, so, looking for leverage, Iruka placed his hands on top of the older man's and interlaced their fingers as a moan of pleasure fell from in between his lips. "You're so cute."

"Don't flatter me, Kakashi...!" Iruka's ears burned red at the praise from the older man, and he let out a small sigh as one of Kakashi's hands drifted down to wrap around the base of his cock, starting to give him a handjob. The extra boost of pleasure helped him get used to the stretch, so he moved just a bit, signaling for Kakashi to do the same.

"I'm just being honest," Thankfully, Kakashi didn't say anything more than that, picking up the speed as he pulled out and thrust back in, the slightly wet noise of his hips being pushed against Iruka's backside somehow acting as even more of a turnon. Iruka tried his best to reciprocate, throwing his hips back in time with Kakashi's movements and relishing in how the Jonin groaned lowly.

"Fuck," Kakashi hissed, burying his face into the back of Iruka's neck as the pace at which he was pistoning his hips increased. Iruka couldn't even keep up anymore and felt himself begin to shake at the feeling of Kakashi pounding into him. "Can I cum inside you?"

"Please do," Iruka gasped as the head of Kakashi's length slammed into a particularly sensitive spot, the Jonin's hand that was still on his cock sending him over the edge. "I'm-!" The brunette leaned further back into Kakashi's touch, legs shaking as he came, his own orgasm seeming to trigger Kakashi's as well. The silver-haired man froze, hot ropes of white cum coating Iruka's inner walls as he bit into the brunette's shoulder. Iruka could only let out a weak moan as the water that was hitting them got a little cooler, and he allowed his eyes to fall shut, dark lashes fluttering against his cheeks.

After a few seconds, Kakashi slowly pulled out, turning Iruka back around and pressing a gentle kiss against his lips.

Silence followed, in which they tried to calm their rapidly beating hearts. A few seconds passed, and Kakashi grabbed the shampoo, pouring some into his hands and using it to wash Iruka's hair. The brunette leaned into the touch, ignoring the fact that the water that was running over them was gradually turning cold. It was oddly intimate, the only sound in the room being that of the water hitting their bodies as they washed each other, rough hands running over soft, scarred skin. Iruka nearly shivered at every tender touch, only letting out a small chuckle when Kakashi's eyes met his again.

It was nice, he thought, and he found himself having to get rid of the thought that he wanted those touches more often as they rinsed the soap and shampoo off of them.

"You good?" Kakashi asked once they'd caught their breaths, his hands moving to rest on Iruka's hips.

"I'm good..." Iruka had to suppress a grin at the feeling of Kakashi pressing a kiss against the top of his head as he shut the shower off, both of them stepping out and onto the bathmat. He took his own towel off of the counter and wrapped it around his waist before reaching into the bathroom cabinet for one to hand to Kakashi. "Here's a towel to dry off with." Kakashi took the towel, quickly drying his hair and body before folding it and tossing it into the bathroom hamper. "Wanna stay the night?"

"Ah, I can't," Kakashi slipped his boxers and pants back on, which were followed by his shirt, vest, shoes, mask, and forehead protector. Iruka suddenly felt extremely underdressed but didn't make any moves to change that, only leaning back against the counter with the towel still wrapped around his waist. "I have a mission to do tonight."

"That's alright," Iruka reassured, offering a small smile to hide his disappointment. "Maybe another time?"

"Yeah. I'll see you around."

With that, Kakashi left the restroom, and Iruka smiled as he heard his bedroom window open and close again, signaling that Kakashi had exited through it.

Iruka was suddenly overcome by a sinking sensation in his stomach that sent chills through his body and had a frown taking over his face.

"God... This doesn't feel right," Iruka sighed, looking at himself in the mirror. He felt oddly empty without Kakashi's arms around him, hands resting on his body like they had been moments before, but he quickly shook his head at the thought. Unfortunately, it was too late, and Kakashi was already clouding his mind again. "Why do I want you here so badly? I don't even like you like that."

Letting out a frustrated huff, he pulled his towel tighter around his body and left the bathroom, trying to think of anyone and anything but Kakashi Hatake.


	8. Eight

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kakashi Hatake and Iruka Umino make-out in the local lake like a couple of teenagers. However, their make-out session is cut short. Alternatively, Kakashi's smitten with Iruka and hasn't realized it yet.

Kakashi Hatake was smiling underneath his mask as him and Iruka approached the area where the lake was, growing closer and closer to his cabin with each step they took. Though Iruka seemed to be in great spirits, Kakashi was rather conflicted. They continued to walk together, Kakashi's mind racing with a million thoughts, Iruka looking rather carefree. Since they were going to swim, they were both already in their swimsuits, their other clothes packed in the bags that they carried on their back- those of which they'd brought since they planned on staying the night at the cabin.

Breaking the silence, Iruka spoke up, shooting Kakashi a casual glance.

"Hey, Kakashi."

"Hm?" The silver-haired man tilted his head, and before he knew it, Iruka was running off, sandal-covered feet roughly hitting the ground with each step. 

For just a second, he looked back, calling out to the Jonin. "I'll race you to the cabin!"

Deciding to entertain the brunette, Kakashi began to run as well, anything that was on his mind flying out the window as he tried to catch up to the younger man without using any Jutsus. When he got there, Iruka was already at the door, and they both laughed as they tumbled in through the front door of the cabin.

Iruka kicked his sandals off and set his bag down in the entryway, Kakashi doing the same and taking his mask off as well. No one was around, so he figured that there wouldn't really be any risk of someone seeing his face since people avoided the lake due to the rumors about it being haunted. Iruka let his hair down, and with that, they left, heading towards the lake.

"You look like you're in a good mood today, Iruka," Kakashi noted, gesturing to the huge grin that had taken over Iruka's lips, silently relishing in the way the younger man's eyes sparkled with child-like excitement.

How come Kakashi had never noticed how pretty he was before they'd started this whole thing? And why was it only now that he was dwelling on it for so long when Iruka had been in the same village as him for as long as he could remember? Why did he even care that much? Ugh... There it was again- the feeling that had been bothering him for the past few days; fluttery, heart-warming, scary, confusing, and embarrassing at the same time, and he wasn't quite sure how to label it.

"I am! It's a gorgeous day outside," Iruka admired their surroundings as they approached the side of the lake where the water would be deep, standing on the edge of the mossy land that surrounded it and looking over the water. "I really can't believe no one comes here just because of the rumors. What a waste."

"Yeah..." He trailed off, unable to keep his eyes away from Iruka's face. He looks good under the sunlight. "What a waste."

Without warning, a grin took over Iruka's lips, and the brunette was running over to the loch, jumping in. The water splashed with the impact as he landed, sinking underneath the blue surface for a moment before swimming up. When he rose above the water again, looking up at Kakashi, the silver-haired man thought that his heart had stopped. The sunlight brought out every shade of gold and brown in Iruka's eyes and hair, every freckle on his shoulders, the light pink that was dusted across his sunkissed cheeks.

"Well? Are you gonna join me or not?" He questioned, moving his hair- which was dripping with water- out of his face with his hands. Kakashi nodded and joined him in a considerably more calm manner, simply easing into the lake instead of jumping right in. The water was cold, but the warm weather made it easier to stand, so he didn't mind it as he slowly swam towards the younger man until he was in front of him. Thankfully, his feet could touch the floor of the body of water, so he could stand as Iruka opened his mouth to address him. "Are you alright, Kakashi? You've been a bit off."

"Have I? Sorry about that. I must be tired."

"You know, we were never really close before we started all of this, but now that I'm around you more..." Iruka looked up at the sky as if he was in thought before his eyes met Kakashi's again- dark brown meeting black. Though the Jonin was usually cool, calm, and collected, he found himself gulping nervously. "I've noticed that you have this cycle. You'll be in a really good mood one day, and then normal the next, you'll go a couple more acting pretty distant, and then the cycle repeats itself."

"Can't say I ever noticed that myself, actually..." That was a complete lie and he knew it. He did go through those cycles- times where he'd allow himself to get close to people before regretting it because he was afraid he'd get hurt again and deciding to distance himself, only to fall back into it. Only certain people managed to pull him into that- namely The Third Hokage, who he valued as another mentor, Guy, who was his best friend, and Iruka, who... Well, he wasn't sure what Iruka was to him at this point, and part of him was afraid to think about it in depth. "Then again, you're the analytical type when it comes to people. It makes sense that you're a teacher- you're able to notice the subtle things."

"You think so?" The brunette chuckled, seemingly embarrassed by the compliment as he ran a hand through his own hair. It was out of its usual ponytail, loose and framing the twenty-year-olds face perfectly.

"Yeah, I do," The silver-haired man answered, and the damn feeling that had been bothering all day returned and made his heart drop to the bottom of his stomach. "You know, you should wear your hair down more often. It's really nice."

"Thank you..." Iruka murmured, tucking a strand of his chocolate-hued hair behind his ear and averting his eyes from Kakashi's with a small smile. 

There was a moment of silence, and whatever the feeling was that had been bothering Kakashi all throughout the day was compelling him to brush Iruka's hair over his shoulders and pull the Chunin in for a kiss. It was slow and tender, and Kakashi wondered exactly how far it would escalate as he felt one of Iruka's legs being tossed around his waist to pull him closer, the brunette's arms loosely wrapped around his neck. Unfortunately, the kiss was interrupted by the noise of some footsteps that weren't too far away, as well as some childish sounding voices. 

"Did you hear that?" Kakashi asked, and Iruka yanked back at the noise, pulling his arms away from Kakashi's neck and crossing them over his chest, looking around the surrounding area with a worried expression. "I think someone's here."

"Yeah, maybe... Probably just some kids or something," Iruka laughed, and Kakashi found himself turning a bit to hide the blush that took over his cheeks. "Wanna head back to the cabin? We could continue this there." Nodding, Kakashi slipped one arm under Iruka's legs, the other under the brunette's back, picking him up bridal style. He immediately looked up at Kakashi, eyes wide and tone scolding as he spoke. "Kakashi!"

"What?" He asked, tone teasing as he grinned down at Iruka, whose face was also burning red.

"Nothing..." He huffed, wrapping his arms around Kakashi's neck and grinning up at him. "Let's just go."


	9. Nine

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Iruka Umino realizes that he does, in fact, have a crush on Kakashi Hatake. Unfortunately, he's never had a mere semblance of any sort of way to handle his own emotions, and he certainly isn't going to start now.

Iruka Umino found himself uncharacteristically nervous as he walked through the streets of The Leaf Village, no other than Kakashi Hatake by his side. There was an awkward silence between the two men that the brunette found himself wanting to break, but he couldn't think of exactly what he would even want to say.

The day before, they had gone to the lake that was a couple of hours away from the general area where they both lived in The Leaf Village on foot. Iruka had attempted to seem like he had been in a particularly good mood that day, but if he was being honest, he'd just been trying to hype himself up and act as okay as possible to avoid letting Kakashi know how conflicted he truly was. Kakashi had actually seemed down in the dumps through the duration of the time they'd spent together, and though the silver-haired man certainly wasn't the dramatic type, if you got to be in his presence enough, it was easy to tell when he was upset about something- especially when he wasn't wearing his mask. 

Maybe Kakashi had gotten so used to having that mask on to cover what he was really feeling that he didn't know how to suppress certain expressions that gave everything away when it was off.

Yeah, that must've been the case. Kakashi had been off the entire day and even throughout the morning, letting an occasional frown slip or averting his eyes and tuning out whenever Iruka talked to him. When Iruka had tried to ask what was wrong, Kakashi had managed to change the subject- usually to praising the brunette for one thing or another, whether it be how caring or perceptive he was, because Kakashi had apparently mastered the art of taking attention off of himself when he didn't want it.

When they'd went swimming, they'd had a small scare- some footsteps and voices catching their attention from somewhere in the forest near the loch. Though they'd brushed it off as some kids who were probably exploring because of the rumors that had been bouncing around about that area for the past few years, Kakashi hadn't had his mask on, and they'd been making out in the water, so they'd rushed inside, but...

That had made Iruka think about things in depth. What if someone saw them one of these days? Would Kakashi care? Would he want to end things? Would it even bother him at all? Even Iruka himself wasn't quite sure of how he felt about their arrangement, let alone what would happen if other people were to find out about it.

The rest of that day had been relatively normal, though. Kakashi had carried him inside, they'd messed around some more before having sex in the Jonin's bed, then they'd had a round two in the shower and made dinner. After that, they went swimming in the lake again (thankfully, no one was around that time, but Kakashi was sure to wear his mask, and a second makeout session never occurred), went inside and ate dinner when the weather turned cold, and subsequently went to bed.

That morning, they'd woken up, gotten ready for the day, eaten breakfast, packed their things, and left the cabin to walk back to The Leaf Village.

Iruka was still in thought as he realized that they were in a much busier area of the village, the roads now filled with businesses and people going about their days; shopping civilians, playing children, traveling ninjas.

"Iruka?" Kakashi spoke, snapping Iruka out of his thoughts, and the brunette hated how he felt his face burn at the way his name rolled off of the silver-haired man's lips like that.  
Even the sound of Kakashi's voice was starting to make his head spin, and Iruka was at a point where he was starting to realize that this was not just friends with benefits for him. The peculiar interest that he'd had in the older man for the years leading up to it had been haunting him for the past few days and the epiphany that whatever he felt towards Kakashi might've been what he was trying to avoid the whole time was terrifying. Agreeing to something so non-platonic yet long-term was reckless and scary, and completely out of character for someone as cautious as Iruka. Still, Kakashi's allure was irresistible, and he was just along for the ride. 

"Yeah?" He responded just a little too late, earning a suspicious glance from Kakashi as he nervously pulled at the neck of his vest. Had it always been so hot where they lived, or were his feelings getting to him?

A crush. Iruka didn't want to have a crush, and he'd been telling himself that it was anything but a crush throughout the course of their newfound (not romantic) relationship, but... Well, the instances that made him fear otherwise were starting to pile up. Of course, he didn't want to get invested in someone as unpredictable as Kakashi, and he'd made a habit of subtly distancing himself from the people who tried to get close to him to avoid the risk of losing them and getting hurt. He supposed that was immature, but it was just how he had lived life for the past ten or eleven years, and he knew that letting his guard down would be difficult.

'I don't like him, I don't like him, I don't-' Kakashi looked at him, and though his mask was covering his face, Iruka could tell that he was smiling just by the bright sparkle in his charcoal-hued eyes. His thoughts immediately continued in the opposite direction they had been just seconds before. 'Goddammit, I do like him, don't I?'

"Iruka? Are you okay? Earth to Iruka." When Iruka blinked again, Kakashi was still next to him, now waving a gloved hand in front of the brunette's face in a clear attempt to catch his attention. It was then that he realized that they'd stopped walking and were standing in front of his apartment building. Had they already arrived? He must've really zoned out...

He opened his mouth to speak, letting it fall shut and repeating the action a few more times before finally mustering up a response. "I'm fine, just... Don't worry about it."

"Oh, okay," Kakashi shrugged, and Iruka realized that whatever feelings he'd had before were only increased tenfold now that he was actually aware of them. "See you later?"  
"Yeah," He answered, giving a weak smile and a matching wave. "I'll see you later."

With that, Kakashi smiled under his mask before turning around and walking away- probably in the direction of his own apartment. Once Kakashi was out of sight, the brunette placed his hands over his face, groaning into them.

What had he gotten himself into?


	10. Ten

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kakashi Hatake ascertains that he's in love with Iruka Umino and proceeds to throw a tantrum on the cheap balcony of his apartment at the expense of an innocent pack of cigarettes.

Kakashi Hatake couldn't say he was expecting Iruka to drop by his apartment at two in the morning, but he also couldn't say that he was complaining about it.

"Hi," The brunette was smiling, a small blush on his face as he stood in Kakashi's doorway. It was a bit odd for Iruka to be there, as Kakashi was the one to make most of the first moves when it came to whatever their relationship was- but again, Kakashi couldn't complain.

"My, what a nice surprise this is," Kakashi smirked, pulling his mask down before tucking his fingers into the belt loops of Iruka's pants and yanking the brunette in by them. Once Iruka was in his apartment, he shut the door behind them, pulling his mask down. "What brings you by here, Sensei?"

"I just thought I'd come by and say hello," He mused sarcastically, a large grin on his face as he wrapped his arms around Kakashi and leaned up to nip at the Jonin's ear. "C'mon, Kakashi, you know what I'm here for."

"Someone's taking charge tonight," Kakashi quirked an eyebrow, fully taking his mask off and tossing it onto his living room couch. Thankfully, he was already shirtless, as he'd been laying in bed before the younger man had shown up.

"You mind?" Iruka teased, taking his forehead protector off and setting it on one of the tables in Kakashi's living room, following that by taking off his shirt and dropping it to the ground. Already able to feel his cock growing hard, Kakashi shook his head, leaning in closer and pressing a gentle kiss against the top of the Chunin's forehead as he pushed his sweatpants and boxers down, already at a point where he couldn't bring himself to be bashful around Iruka anymore.

"Of course not."

They tumbled into the bedroom, Iruka quick to make work of the rest of his clothes so they were both naked when the brunette pushed him back onto the bed and crawled on top of him.

"Can I?" Iruka asked, and it would've been hard not to know what he meant. It was true that, throughout their arrangement, Kakashi had taken charge and topped most of the time, but something about the thought of the younger man fucking him into the mattress nearly had him reeling in excitement. He simply gave a hurried not, resting his head back against the pillow as Iruka moved to sit on his knees between his legs.

"Yeah, don't even bother with prep," Iruka gave him a concerned look- like he was about to argue that it wasn't a good idea before Kakashi continued. "I mean it. I want you so fucking bad right now."

Seeming convinced, the brunette leaned over to the nightstand and dug through the top drawer before finally surfacing with a bottle of lube, that of which he opened to pour some of the clear substance into his hands. One hand was used to tease Kakashi's rim, coating it in lube, while the other was used to slick up the brunette's length before he positioned it at the silver-haired man's entrance.

When Iruka finally slipped into him, the lube making things easier, he gasped at the stretch, eyes screwing shut as he arched his back off the bed. 

After a few torturous moments of Iruka waiting for him to adjust, the brunette pulled out about halfway and pushed back in, drawing a moan from both of them. He started to pick up a steady pace, hands hooked underneath Kakashi's knees, pushing them against the older man's chest. 

Iruka's body was pressed flush against Kakashi's, the silver-haired man's hard cock trapped between both of their lower abdomens, the friction that was provided with each of Iruka's movements making the Jonin grasp at the sheets.

Kakashi was sure that he looked a mess; silvery hair stuck against his forehead due to the light sheen of sweat that covered it, eyes blown wide and face bright red as his lip slightly trembled from the pleasure that was coursing through his body.

"Kakashi... Wow," Kakashi tried- he really tried to tell himself that this was just friends with benefits, but the way Iruka was staring down at him with nothing but wonder in those sparkling brown eyes made his heart want to leap out of his chest, and he knew that if he continued lying to himself, it'd only make things worse. The way Iruka looked down at him was so warm and intimate that it had Kakashi closing his eyes and looking off to the side to avoid the heat of the younger man's gaze, unsure of whether or not he'd be able to handle being looked at like he was some sort of masterpiece for much longer. "I could really get used to seeing you like this."

"This is a pretty good view as well, actually..." He managed to open his eyes, peering up at Iruka and moving his hands to rest on the brunette's face, caressing his cheeks. Gentle and tentative, Kakashi ran his thumb over one of the ends of Iruka's scars and leaned up just far enough to kiss him. The silver-haired man moved his mouth against Iruka's in a rough yet fluid manner, taking the younger man's bottom lip between his teeth and nipping at it before running his tongue over the smooth surface and relishing in the way the brunette moaned into his mouth as a response.

"Fuck, don't do that..." Iruka murmured, though it sounded more desperate than scolding as he buried his face into the crook between Kakashi's neck and shoulder. "You're gonna make me cum," The rocking of his hips against Kakashi's only grew more and more fervent, making the silver-haired man move his hands up to take the hair tie out of the brunette's hair, threading his fingers between the wavy, chocolate-hued locks and pulling at them.

"Isn't that the point?" He asked, voice somewhat weak and shaky as he tossed his head back into his pillow.

"Kakashi," Iruka whispered in his ear, tone low and praising as he thrust into the Jonin's sweet spot, hitting a bundle of nerves that made him keen. "You're so good...!"

And suddenly, it was too much. His cock trapped between his and Iruka's midsection, the brunette fucking into his pliant body like there was no tomorrow, the surprisingly sharp teeth that were biting into his neck so hard that he was sure there would be a mark in the morning- it was too much, and Kakashi felt heat run from his head to his toes as he finally came against the younger man's tight abs.

Iruka pulled out, seeming reluctant to do so, but doing it anyway. His hands were pulled away from Kakashi's legs, and thankfully, the silver-haired man could move them again, so he let them fall flat on the bed with Iruka still between them. A small moan left the brunette's lips as he balanced his weight on one arm, keeping his face buried in Kakashi's neck as he used his spare hand to finish himself off. Kakashi sighed, warm and satisfied as the Chunin came on his pale thighs, painting the skin a creamy white. 

For a few seconds, the only sounds that resonated in his ears were those of his own heartbeat and Iruka's heavy breaths.

"Damn..." Kakashi let out a small huff as Iruka reached over to grab a Kleenex from the nightstand, using it to wipe the cum off of their bodies before throwing it in the trash bin and laying back down, pulling the blankets over both himself and Kakashi.

Enjoying the calming silence, Kakashi rolled over and turned the lamp on, wrapping his arms around Iruka and resting his head on the brunette's chest, listening to his heartbeat, which was surprisingly fast. Iruka seemed to be thinking about something, staring up at the ceiling, and something about him and the ethereal way he looked at that moment made Kakashi feel particularly romantic.

"Have you ever been in love before, Iruka?" Kakashi asked, almost immediately regretting it when he felt Iruka's body tense up.  
"In love? That's sudden, but, well... No, not really, to be honest. Well, kinda, but... It's never going anywhere. I'm not even sure how I feel about love in general. I think it's just more trouble than it's worth sometimes from what I've seen. It's a good thing, but not for me. What do you think? About love, I mean."

Kakashi thought on it for a moment, debating on whether he should play it off or give an honest answer. Iruka had been genuine, so even if it was a little nervewracking, he decided that he should do the same. "Well... I don't think it's meant for me. I try not to get too close to anyone in fear of it going wrong. It'd be nice to have, really, but after all the things I've done, I'm not sure if I deserve it. It's complicated."

"I think you deserve it," Iruka murmured, leaning down to run a hand through Kakashi's hair. His hands were warm and soothing, and Kakashi found himself leaning into the touch, his head still resting on the brunette's soft chest. "We've all done things that are messed up, and we've all made mistakes. It doesn't mean we don't deserve to be happy. I wish life was simpler to understand, and I wish that we all knew what's going to happen in our lives, but we don't. Even if it could go wrong, it's worth taking the risk if love is something you really want, because, for all you know, it could go right."

"Yeah... That's true." 

Kakashi blinked, repeating that one line in his head.

It could go right.

It could go right with the right person.

It could go right with Iruka.

Before he could even process that thought, he was slipping out of the bed, grabbing some pajama pants from his dresser before putting them on and going to his nightstand to grab his pack of cigarettes. Smoking was an old, dark habit that he hadn't really partaken in since he was in the Anbu- which was more than a year or two ago now- and it was only a stress reliever.

But, as the realization about Iruka hit him like a ton of bricks, he knew that he'd need a fucking stress reliever and a breath of fresh air.

"Where are you going?" Iruka questioned, sitting up and allowing the blankets to pool in his lap. His dark hair brushed against the sunkissed skin of his shoulders and collarbones as he tilted his head, the warm light of the bedroom bringing out the different shades of brown in his eyes, and- 'Oh no, oh fuck, he's gorgeous, why am I like this-'

No. No, no, no.

Absolutely not. 

Kakashi Hatake wasn't in love. 

He was supposed to be a brick wall- solid, he'd vowed years ago that he wouldn't risk getting close to anyone again in fear of what could happen to them. He didn't want another instance like with his father, or Minato-Sensei, or Obito, or Rin, and those attachments weren't even romantic in the slightest to him, but here he was now... Romantically involving himself with Iruka Umino when the brunette probably didn't even feel the same way. Kakashi should've just cut him off after they'd hooked up the one time back at his cabin near the lake, as he had with everyone else he'd ever had sex with, but he couldn't just not be around Iruka when the opportunity was present, and now, he was starting to understand why the friends with benefits offer had even occurred to him in the first place.

When he stopped panicking, he looked up to see that Iruka was still staring at him, appearing to be terribly concerned.

"Don't worry, I'll be right back. I'm just going to have a smoke." He walked out of the room, not even bothering with his mask as he made his way to the living room, and then to the front door. When he got outside of his apartment, the pack of cigarettes in his hand, he realized that he didn't even have a lighter with him- not that he'd really intended to smoke in the first place in fear of the smell bothering Iruka, but he'd needed an excuse. And, as he stood there aimlessly, staring out into the night sky from the railing, he realized why he'd been feeling everything he'd been feeling over the past God knows how many years- why, at that very moment, he wanted to head back inside so he could go back to bed and fall asleep in Iruka's arms- why falling asleep in Iruka's arms was such a good feeling, how those were the only times he hadn't had nightmares in his sleep for the past twenty years. "I'm in love... God fucking dammit," In a fit of frustration, he let out a powerless yell and threw the cigarettes as far as he could, able to hear the little clack they made when they slammed against the roof of the apartment that was adjacent to his and fell to the ground. "I'm so fucked."


	11. Eleven

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Iruka Umino is a bit worried when he notices that Kakashi Hatake has started to avoid him. However, he's also well aware of the fact that he has more important things to worry about- Naruto Uzumaki, in particular.

Iruka Umino was conflicted as he walked through the streets of Konoha, arms crossed over his chest. Two weeks had passed since he'd last seen Kakashi, and he was starting to have the nagging suspicion that the silver-haired man was avoiding him.

Sure, the last night he'd spent at the Jonin's place, he'd known something was wrong. Kakashi had acted normal during the sex and then super distant afterward, and when Iruka had tried to get whatever was wrong out of him, Kakashi had changed the subject. Iruka had left the following morning with a bad feeling plaguing the back of his mind, and of course, he'd been correct, because Kakashi hadn't contacted him at all.

Usually, Kakashi was the one to initiate, so he'd waited about a week in case the older man simply wanted some space. But, when two weeks had passed, he began to grow worried, as they hadn't gone that long without seeing each other since whatever their relationship was had started. 

So, he'd gone to Kakashi's apartment, just to talk and maybe hook up again, only for the silver-haired man not to answer. Iruka wasn't sure whether the Jonin was actually home and actively chose to ignore him or if he just hadn't been at his apartment, but either way, he'd left feeling somewhat dejected.

Now he was walking through the streets of The Leaf Village in an attempt to clear his mind to no avail. On the bright side, he supposed he could see the more positive things about the temporary break. It gave him time to think about his own feelings, which he still hadn't sorted through...

Okay, so he was in love with Kakashi. He wouldn't ever say it aloud, but he was.

Kakashi's feelings were unclear, though he probably didn't like Iruka back.

He knew that much. But what was he supposed to do with that information?

He wasn't sure about that, but his thoughts were cut off by the sight of spiky blonde hair and bright blue eyes. It was then that he realized he was in front of Naruto's apartment building, which The Third Hokage paid for him to live in.

Iruka frowned at the sight of it. It was cheap, and while he knew that The Third Hokage wasn't made of money, he wished that Naruto was better-taken care of. It made sense that Naruto wasn't able to be fostered like most other children or kept in the orphanage- his situation was delicate and a lot of the adults in The Leaf Village knew about his association with the fox and wouldn't hesitate to hurt him because of it.

Still, though, he wished someone would do more for Naruto... He wished he could do more for Naruto, but he wasn't the Jinchuriki's dad and he didn't know what lines he should and shouldn't cross. He tried his best not to stick his nose in Naruto's business too much, only stopping the boy when he was pulling one of his infamous pranks and teaching him when he was at The Academy during the school year, but seeing him sitting on the front steps of the apartment complex with a frown, rubbing at his eyes had Iruka genuinely concerned.

"Naruto," Iruka stopped, walking up to the steps and kneeling down in front of them so he was at the same height as his student. "What's wrong?"

"Nothing's wrong!" The blonde exclaimed, not convincing at all as he looked off to the side. His cheeks and eyes were both red and puffy, and it was obvious that he'd been crying. "Leave me alone."

Iruka sighed, staying silent for a moment. Despite his words, Naruto didn't leave, only looking at him expectantly. It made sense that the boy was upset- it was summer, he didn't have school, and he didn't have any family or friends to be around. He was only ten, and probably just as lonely as Iruka had been when he was younger if not more so- No, it was definitely worse for Naruto, because unlike Iruka, he had the disadvantage of being hated by almost the entire village.

As much as Naruto and his antics had pissed Iruka off at certain times, he'd learned that arguing with Naruto was basically pointless. Plus, the kid hadn't done anything wrong in this instance. So, Iruka only stood up, crossing his arms and offering a small shrug.

"I was gonna offer to take you shopping and to Ichiraku, but if you really want me to leave-" He started, dramatic in his movements as he acted like he was about to walk away. Unsurprisingly, Naruto stood up and took one of his hands without a second of hesitation.

"Wait, I'll come with you, Iruka-Sensei!"

"Thank goodness," With that, Iruka started to walk, Naruto's hand still holding his unusually tight. He made a mental note to drop by and check on his student more as they headed towards Ichiraku, Naruto practically buzzing with excitement. Initially, he hadn't planned on finding Naruto and doing any of this, but he wanted to make the boy's day better, and it wouldn't hurt to catch up with him over some ramen and take him shopping for anything he might need. Though The Third Hokage paid his utilities and for his apartment, the allowance he gave Naruto probably wasn't enough for the blonde to spoil himself with, and Iruka didn't mind putting a dent in his wallet if it helped Naruto out and made him feel a little less lonely. "It sucks to miss out on your company."

"Really?" Naruto asked, and Iruka suddenly felt guilt take over him. Was it really possible that Naruto had assumed that no one enjoyed his company because of everything he'd been through?

"Of course! Who wouldn't want you around?" Iruka regretted the question almost as soon as it left its mouth, knowing that the honest answer would be most people, but thankfully, Naruto didn't answer that. 

"Iruka-Sensei," Naruto tilted his head, letting go of Iruka's hand and crossing his arms, staring up at the brunette with a concerned look in his ocean-hued eyes. Iruka had to suppress a frown as he thought back to Kakashi, the silver-haired man still plaguing the back of his mind. "You seem sad."

"Ah, I'm alright. Don't worry about it, Naruto," He gave a dismissive wave, though Naruto didn't seem to be buying it at all, so he decided to change the subject to keep the boy from prying. "How about a piggyback ride?"

"Wait, really!?" Naruto asked, a smile taking over his face.

"Yes, really," Iruka couldn't help but smile back, kneeling down and chuckling as Naruto climbed onto his back, wrapping his arms around the brunette's arms from behind. Careful to support the blonde's legs with his arms, Iruka stood back up and began to run, relishing in the carefree laughter that left Naruto's mouth.

For the first time in two weeks, he was in a good mood, and he realized that he could worry about Kakashi later. Right now? He had to get to Ichiraku Ramen.


	12. Twelve

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kakashi Hatake has been avoiding Iruka Umino for weeks, afraid that he would risk ruining their relationship if he spilled his feelings. Thankfully, Pakkun is always around to offer him good advice.

Kakashi Hatake was depressed and confused as he laid alone in his bed, his bedroom door cracked open. He was ready to sleep for the night, wearing some warm pajamas to accommodate for the oddly chilly weather that infiltrated his apartment when his door was opened all the way by a little paw. Kakashi glanced over to see that Pakkun was walking in.

"Kakashi, what's going on?" The pug questioned as he sat at the side of Kakashi's bed, staring up at the silver-haired man from his spot on the wooden floor.

"Nothing much," Kakashi answered, trying to sound casual, though his companion immediately shot him a disapproving frown- or, the best frown that a dog could muster.

"No, seriously, what's going on?" He questioned again, and that was what made Kakashi realize that the ninken had picked up on the fact that he'd been upset.

Of course, he'd been upset. Upon realizing that he was in fucking love, he'd had a whole ass crisis and made the idiotic decision to avoid Iruka for the weeks following in a failed attempt to escape his feelings.

"Who said something's going on?" Kakashi asked, but Pakkun clearly didn't believe him. Instead, the pug hopped onto the bed, laying down next to where Kakashi was on the mattress.

"You've been out of it lately, and I know you giving me and the others a ton of cash to go out every other night isn't just something you felt like doing..." That much was true. The nights Pakkun was referring to were nights where he'd had Iruka over, and quite frankly, he didn't want his ninken to hear him having sex, so he'd given them some money to go out and enjoy themselves. "At least, that happened on the nights you weren't just gone." Those nights were the times that Kakashi had went to Iruka's, or to the cabin with Iruka. It made sense that Pakkun noticed his sudden schedule change.

"I've been busy with work," He lied, earning a huff of disbelief from Pakkun.

"Kakashi."

"Alright, so I might have something going on, Pakkun. It's not that big of a deal," He tried to reassure his summon to no avail as he moved to lay on his side, facing him.

"You've been sad recently, though... Does it have something to do with that time I walked in on Iruka sitting in your lap?"

Ah. Pakkun was receptive as ever. Kakashi was hoping that the pug had forgotten about that little incident, but apparently not.

Naturally, Kakashi couldn't bring himself to lie. "Maybe." 

"So, you and Iruka?"

'Me and Iruka? I wish,' He thought. 

"Not necessarily."

"I know you've always liked him."

"Is that so? I guess you figured that out before I did," Kakashi muttered, sighing and running a hand through his messy hair.

"So you're only just now realizing it."

"Yeah. A little while ago, I started this friends with benefits relationship with him after we hooked up one night. Really, I should have just left it at the initial hook up, but I guess the repressed crush that I've had on him for the past God knows how many years surfaced and implanted the stupid F.W.B. idea in my head, so I went with it. We've been fooling around with each other for a pretty good time now, and the last time he came over here... Well, it just kinda hit me," He explained, frowning and looking away from Pakkun's eyes as he thought back to the last night he'd spent with Iruka- the night he'd realized that he was in love and angrily tossed his old pack of cigarettes off the railing of his apartment in a fit of childish frustration. "Sure, I'd been bothered by this feeling for a while, but I didn't really recognize it as love until it just... Like I said, it just hit me one night a few weeks ago, and I've been avoiding him ever since."

"So you realize you have a crush, and instead of doing the normal thing," Clearly already tired of Kakashi's bullshit, Pakkun buried his face in his paws and let out a small growl that was comparable to the groan of a human before looking up and at Kakashi with an expression that said nothing but 'I'm so done with your bullshit'. "You decide to-"

"Avoid him. Yes, I know it's stupid."

At this point, Kakashi was sure that his entire life was stupid. His job was stupid. His bad luck was stupid. His past was stupid. His crush was stupid. The fact that he was getting advice from his ninken, who was quite possibly his best (non-human) friend, was also stupid. He felt fucking ridiculous.

"So why are you doing it?"

Kakashi paused for just a moment, struggling to come up with the right words to summarize exactly what he had been feeling for the past month or so before it finally came to him.

"Because I'm scared."

"Of what? Iruka's nice enough, and if he's been sleeping with you," Pakkun pointed out, raising a paw and staring up at the ceiling for a moment. "There's a good chance of him liking you back."

"I think he's just in it for the physical aspect..." Kakashi muttered, running a hand over Pakkun's short but smooth fur, finding the familiar texture to be rather comforting. "He doesn't have much relationship experience anyways and I don't want to bother him with all of my baggage." Of course, Pakkun knew about almost all of his baggage. The pug wouldn't ever be inclined to tell anyone else, and he had been around since Kakashi was around seven, so he'd seen the impact of most everything the Jonin had been through. "I think I'm more scared about the fact that I'm not really used to feeling like this- that and everything that could go wrong because of it."

"That's fair, but even if he's going to reject you, it's better to communicate and get it out of the way now instead of just leaving him hanging. He's probably really confused if you've been actively avoiding him."

"...I'll think on it," Kakashi acquiesced, able to acknowledge that Pakkun had much more common sense than him. "Where are the others?"

"In a dogpile on your living room couch..." Pakkun sighed, shaking his head. "More like all of them are sleeping on Bull, who is on the couch. There's gonna be a ton of hair on that couch in the morning."

"You know I don't care," Having eight dogs, Kakashi had gotten used to the sight of dog hair, and he was at a point where he didn't mind it all that much, only vacuuming his place a few times a week to manage it. "Are you staying here?" Kakashi questioned, rolling over to lay on his stomach on the other side of the bed. He rested his head in his arms, staring up at the ceiling.

"Do you want me to, or would you rather be left alone?" Pakkun asked, standing up and placing a paw on Kakashi's shoulder. 

The silver-haired man debated on it, but ultimately decided that he didn't want to be by himself and shook his head. "I want you here."

With that, Pakkun moved, his small weight comforting as he laid down and curled up on Kakashi's lower back.

"Good night, Kakashi."

"Good night, Pakkun."


	13. Thirteen

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Iruka Umino is confused when Kakashi Hatake shows up at his doorstep after weeks of no contact whatsoever. Regardless, that doesn't change the fact that he's also delighted to see the face of the man he's fallen in love with.

Iruka Umino had been both refreshed and relieved to step out of the shower, a loose robe around his mostly bare body, damp hair falling over his shoulders as he relished in the smell of his lavender soap and shampoo.

Keywords; had been.

The content that he'd been feeling was immediately thrown out the window when he heard a knock on his door. It was past midnight at least, and the only reason he wasn't already asleep was that he'd been grading papers, hence why he'd also showered so late. He wasn't even sure of exactly what time it was. Surely, whoever was there was someone who knew him.

With a sigh, he walked from his hallway to his living room, and then to the front door, holding his robe close to his body to make sure that it didn't come open due to its somewhat unsecured tie as he unlocked and opened his front door.

"Kakashi... It's late," Iruka frowned at the sight of the Jonin, who'd pulled his mask down the second the brunette had opened the door. He appeared to be distraught about something, expression clearly conflicted as he struggled to meet Iruka's gaze, tension rolling off of him in dark waves. Though it was late, Iruka found himself opening the door all the way and stepping to the side to allow Kakashi into his apartment. "Come on in."

Silently, Kakashi did come in, Iruka closing the door behind them, not even relatively prepared for what would come after.

The second the door clicked shut, Iruka froze at the feeling of Kakashi's lips being slammed against his in a manner that was uncharacteristically rough and sloppy for the older man. He didn't object, only tilting his head to the side to accommodate as Kakashi's rough hands moved to his shoulders, pushing his robe down to reveal his sunkissed skin. Iruka shuddered at Kakashi's cold skin against his, and his robe slipped further down, revealing most of his chest and hanging loosely around the crook between his forearms and inner elbows. 

"I'm sorry," Kakashi spoke between kisses, his pace fervent as he pushed Iruka up against the living room wall, lips trailing down to the brunette's neck. Iruka sighed and tilted his head back, wrapping his arms around Kakashi's neck to pull him closer. "I've been busy. I'll make it up to you, yeah?" Kakashi's hands were resting on his biceps, and despite all of the questions Iruka had, he could only offer a hurried nod.

Busy? Iruka wasn't sure if he believed that. It had been a good three or four weeks since he'd seen Kakashi, and though he'd tried a few times to stop by the older man's apartment a couple of times or (un)coincidentally run into him at the mission desk, it hadn't worked. Obviously, Kakashi hadn't made any effort to contact him, and Iruka would be surprised if the Jonin hadn't been actively avoiding him.

Still, he didn't dare mention it when Kakashi's face was in his neck like that, kissing from the soft skin from his jugular, up to the shell of his ear, which the silver-haired man nipped at with his teeth as he pushed Iruka's further back against the wall. 

Almost like he'd realized something, Kakashi pulled back.

"Kakashi?" Iruka questioned, tilting his head and reaching forward, about to pull Kakashi back into his arms for a hug and ask what the hell was going on so he could get some answers and help with whatever was bothering the older man, but of course, Kakashi shook his head.

"Stay there."

Doing as told, Iruka leaned back against the wall and watched in awe as Kakashi went through the motions. Kicking his shoes off and landing them across the room so hard that they slammed against the wall opposite to them was something that Iruka normally would've scolded Kakashi for, but the brunette found that he could barely bring himself to swallow and breathe, let alone speak as Kakashi took off the mask that had been hanging loosely around his neck, as well as his shirt, throwing them to the ground with a huff. Iruka briefly dwelled on the fact that the silver-haired man hadn't even bothered with his forehead protector and vest like he usually did. 

He must've been in a rush to get there, and it made Iruka wonder exactly what had spurred Kakashi to come to his apartment so suddenly after almost a month of no contact with him whatsoever.

When Kakashi's hands were on him again, pushing the robe all the way off his body and making it fall to the floor, his eyes met the older man's, and they simply stared at each other for a moment before Kakashi was sinking down onto his knees. The Jonin's hands were on his hips, and he was moving up to take the waistband of Iruka's boxers- the one thing the brunette had actually bothered putting on under the robe- between his teeth.

"Kakashi, you don't have to do that," Iruka laughed, suddenly more nervous than he already was as he gently moved a hand down, running it over Kakashi's soft, feathery hair. "I can take them off myself-"

"I want to," It was intimate but oddly aggressive, Kakashi's voice rumbling low in his throat. Though it wasn't necessarily a command, Iruka took it as one, so he stayed still and enjoyed the attention Kakashi was lavishing him in without argument. Slowly, his boxers were dragged down the length of his thighs, and Kakashi allowed them to fall off of Iruka's body and to the floor on top of the previously discarded robe.

Kakashi reached into the pocket of his sweats, pulling out a bottle of lube. Iruka had to suppress a laugh of shock from slipping out. Had Kakashi really planned on this happening that thoroughly? The brunette could only sigh, watching as Kakashi poured some of the substance onto his fingers and dropped the bottle, allowing the hand with the lube on it to move behind Iruka, nimble fingers quickly slipping into the brunette's ass.

Iruka jumped at the feeling, struggling to stay still when Kakashi placed his other hand on Iruka's half-hard dick and wrapped his fingers around the length. He began to gently thrust the three fingers in and out at the same time he moved the hand on Iruka's cock, and the Chunin was unsure of exactly how he should respond. When he looked down, Kakashi was staring up at him, which had his face burning in embarrassment.

One day, that look was going to fucking kill him.

Even worse (or, better, actually), Kakashi winked up at him, and he was gone.

"Kakashi..."

"God, I fucking love it when you say my name like that."

Iruka averted his eyes, squeezing them shut as he grew closer and closer to his climax, the coil in his stomach about to snap. His mind was clouded with lust, and something about the thought of cumming on Kakashi's face was particularly appealing, but unfortunately, the silver-haired man pulled away- fingers withdrawn, lips now trailing up from where they were on his thighs to his mid-section and chest as he slowly rose- and finally, he stood up again. "You're such a tease sometimes," Iruka muttered, suppressing more complaints that threatened to fall from in between his lips as his previously impending orgasm died down. He covered his face with his hands upon feeling Kakashi's piercing gaze on him again, the Jonin only chuckling in response. When Iruka allowed his hands to fall to his side so he could look at Kakashi again, he was unsurprised to see that the silver-haired man had ditched his sweatpants and underwear and was currently using the lube to slicken his hard length.

"I know. Give me your leg real quick," Iruka complied, allowing Kakashi to grab his leg by the crook behind his knee, lifting it up. Once Kakashi had positioned that leg around his waist, Iruka's heel pushing into the pale skin of his back, he let go and used both hands to land on Iruka's ass, hoisting him up and onto the air. Iruka could only gasp and wrap the other leg around Kakashi's waist, looping his arms around the older man's neck to keep himself up. Kakashi seemed to have a good hold on him, and he had quite the upper body strength, but Iruka was nervous as his back was pushed into the wall again. Was Kakashi going to carry him to the bedroom, or were they actually about to fuck against his living room wall? "Good?

"Yeah, but are we really gonna do it like this? The bed's in my room, just down the hall-"

Kakashi cut him off with a brief kiss before burying his face in Iruka's neck and letting out a shaky sigh.

"Too far."  
Without much warning, Kakashi suffocated him with a kiss, gently sinking his cock into him. Iruka gasped into the older man's mouth as a response, moaning when that silver tongue slipped between his lips.

"Fuck, I missed this," Iruka let out some mix between a moan and a whimper when Kakashi broke the kiss, and he found himself placing his hands on Kakashi's cheeks, resting his forehead against the older man's. "I missed you."

The pressure and friction were intense that they made Iruka desperate as Kakashi picked up speed, fucking him against the wall. Iruka moaned again, and the thought that he might be pissing off his neighbors crossed his mind, but immediately left when the silver-haired man hit his prostate. Iruka squirmed in his hold, almost upset that he couldn't move his hips much due to their position, but basking in the rough yet sweet treatment his body was currently being given.

"I missed you, too."

"Then where've you been? I-" He cut himself off, taking in a sharp breath when the blissful drag of Kakashi's length being pushed in and out of him became just a little too much. "Ah- I know you've been avoiding me. Did I do something?"

"No, you didn't do anything," Kakashi reassured him, keeping his pace as he pressed a kiss against one of Iruka's wrists. "It wasn't your fault. Just have a lot going on."

Quite frankly, if someone had told Iruka a year ago that he'd be getting fucked against the wall by Kakashi Hatake and simultaneously on the verge of crying in his own apartment at what must've been two or three in the morning, he probably would've laughed.

But, here he was now, squirming against the older man's strong body as he was practically pounded into.

Tears started welling up and falling from his eyes, hitting his cheeks and streaming down his face, only for Kakashi to kiss them away. He wasn't sure if it was just from how overwhelming the pleasure was or if it was from all of the feelings he'd been hiding overflowing in the heat of the moment, but regardless, Kakashi leaned up to kiss them away.

Iruka hated to admit that it was the fuzzy sensation that Kakashi provided when he kissed his cheek and whispered sweet nothings in his ear that sent him over the edge. Tossing his head back into the wall, he grasped Kakashi's shoulders and dug his nails into them so hard that the pale skin was marked an angry red as he came. The extra pressure from the way he clenched down on Kakashi's cock seemed to make him finish as well, and a groan was leaving his mouth the second he spilled inside of Iruka, his hips finally coming to a stop. Iruka whimpered at the feeling of the silver-haired man's cum painting his inner walls, which acted as yet another form of stimulation for a few seconds before Kakashi finally pulled out, carefully setting the brunette down on his feet.

"Sorry about that," Kakashi apologized- probably for finishing inside him- resting his hands on Iruka's hips to keep him upright.

"Don't worry about it, we're gonna have to hit the shower before going to bed." Kakashi gave him a questioning look, to which he offered a small chuckle as he sighed, crossing his arms and catching his breath. "You're staying here for the night and I'm afraid you don't have any choice in the matter."

"I'm not complaining."

With that, they walked out of the living room, on their way to the bathroom.

The shower itself had been quick. Shared, of course, mainly consisting of lazy hands running soap over taut skin and shampoo through soft hair. It was slow and soft in a way that made Iruka feel fuzzy on the inside, even as they stepped out, dried off, and made their way to the bedroom.

Neither of them had bothered with clothes, so they were bare when they finally tumbled into bed, both men pulling the covers over themselves.

Still, even though the atmosphere was considerably lighter than it had been when Kakashi had arrived, Iruka knew that something was off.

Kakashi turned onto his side, facing Iruka, who was laying on his back. The silver-haired man silently moved to wrap his arms around Iruka's body, tangling their legs and cuddling into him.

It was oddly intimate. Oddly soft. Oddly not in character for someone like Kakashi- "Cold-Blooded Kakashi" Hatake.

"Kakashi," Iruka mumbled, feeling his heart skip a beat as Kakashi snuggled even closer to him. "Are you okay?  
"  
"I'm fine." Kakashi's arms around his waist tightened, and he leaned into the touch, gently moving a hand down to card his fingers through Kakashi's hair.

"You sure?" He asked, somewhat concerned. He didn't mind Kakashi being clingy- of course not, he was relishing in it- but it was so out of character for the older man that it had him confused. Had something happened? Was that why the silver-haired man had come tumbling into his apartment like that?

"Mhm..." The Jonin sighed, burying his face into the brunette's abdomen. "Just let me hold you."

"Okay..." He relented, figuring that they might be able to talk about things more in the morning. "Good night."

"Night."


	14. Fourteen

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kakashi Hatake decides to bring Iruka Umino lunch on a whim, and they have a heartfelt conversation about one of Iruka's students- someone who Kakashi himself has always been worried about.

Kakashi Hatake couldn't help but grin as he sat in the window of the Hokage's main building, waiting for Iruka, who was working the mission desk, to notice him. The brunette was sat in between Anko and Ibiki, who were also working the desk, and either no one had realized that the silver-haired man was there, or they were ignoring him.  
Either way, he decided that it was about time to bring some attention to himself, so he used the hand that wasn't holding the bag of takeout he'd brought for them to gently knock against the window frame, laughing when Iruka jumped and turned around to face him in his seat.

"Hey, Iruka-Sensei."

"Kakashi!" The brunette scolded, standing from his chair and walking to the window to jab a finger into Kakashi's clothed chest as he chewed him out. "God, you get me every time. What'd I tell you about knocking and using doors?"

Iruka was blushing hard, and Kakashi could only bring himself to grin underneath his mask. Everyone in the room was staring at them.

"To actually bother using doors?" Kakashi questioned, feigning surprise as he crossed one leg over the other. "Nah, that just isn't my style. What are you up to?"

Deciding that he'd actually enter the room, he hopped off of the windowsill and landed with both feet on the floor, standing up straight in front of Iruka- clearly, a little too close, as the brunette's blush spread down to his neck, and he gulped before taking a step back.

"Working, obviously," Iruka answered, pulling his finger from Kakashi's chest and crossing his arms, looking off to the side.

"So, when did y'all get together?" Anko asked. Iruka turned to address her so fast Kakashi was surprised that the Chunin didn't get whiplash from it.

"We aren't."

Kakashi almost rolled his eyes, conflicted and even a little annoyed. It was true, he and Iruka weren't officially together, but he really wanted them to be. Issues were bound to happen in the hypothetical relationship, sure, but he just wanted to love Iruka and receive that same love in return. 

It was odd, really. He'd tried his best to avoid Iruka and allow the relationship to die out because of his own fears before his will deteriorated and caused him to give in to the urge to show up at the brunette's apartment in the middle of the night. Logically, even though he knew Iruka cared, he also knew that Iruka didn't mean it like that. It wasn't romantic, and it was wrong of him to pretend or even wish that it was. 

Realizing that he'd been a little too silent for a little too long, Kakashi chuckled and held up the bag of food in his hand.

"I brought you lunch."

"Thank you, Kakashi," Iruka turned back to him, offering a small smile before glancing up at the clock that was hung on the wall. "It is around my lunch break... Wanna eat outside with me?"

"Sure."

With that, they left the room and headed outside, Iruka sighing and giving Kakashi an apologetic look as they found a bench to sit on.

"Sorry about Anko, by the way."

"It's no problem," Kakashi dismissed the brunette's apology, pulling out the two containers of sushi from the bag, handing one to Iruka and keeping the other for himself, doing the same with the packaged chopsticks that had come with. Thankfully, next to them was a trashcan, so he threw both the bag and the chopstick wrappers into it as him and Iruka opened their takeout.

"How was your day?"

"Pretty boring, honestly. I went grocery shopping and saw Naruto graffiti the roof of that store, so that's fun."

"You didn't try to stop him!?" Iruka exclaimed, seemingly outraged before he let out a frustrated groan and sunk into the bench. Both of them began to eat, with Kakashi internally debating on how he should respond.

"That's just feeding into him. I know he does it for the attention."

"...Maybe he needs the attention," Iruka, as sensitive as ever, allowed his eyes to fall shut, crossing his arms- like he was seriously thinking about it. A few seconds passed, and he opened his eyes again. "I wish he'd try to get it in more positive ways, though."

"I knew a kid like him when I was younger," Kakashi tried to keep his composure as he thought back to Obito. Though many of the memories were fond ones, he wish they'd gotten along better before the Uchiha's death, and those fond memories were riddled with his own guilt almost every time he lingered on them. "Usually, they start off trying to do things to earn them positive attention- they try to do well in school, excel in things, pick up hobbies that they're talented at. But then, they don't end up getting that positive attention because they either aren't naturally talented or don't have enough support, so their plan doesn't work. After that, they start to feel like negative attention is better than no attention because genuinely trying and failing is much more embarrassing than the easier route of pretending that you weren't trying in the first place to get some laughs from your peers and lectures from your teachers."

"You seem to understand..." Iruka frowned, eating another bite of the sushi and swallowing it with a swig of his water. Then, he looked up at Kakashi with an inquisitive expression. "What do you think I should do? I've tried almost everything and it doesn't work- stopping his pranks doesn't work, detention hasn't worked, talking to him hasn't worked."

"He lives alone and probably doesn't do much over the summer since he doesn't have any friends," Kakashi saw Iruka wince- probably at how bluntly he was wording things, but in retrospect, it was true. There was a moment of silence where both men looked off to the side, finishing their food and setting the empty containers to the side on the bench before Kakashi continued. "He's probably lonely. If you have the time between missions and whatnot, you could always try to spend some time with him and help him with training. He won't feel the need to impress everyone since it'll just be you around, and you might make actual progress with him if you're able to provide some one-on-one time. On top of that, with his time occupied, he wouldn't be terrorizing the village as much."

"Yeah..." Iruka let out a sigh through his nose, nervously fiddling with the ends of his ponytail before resting his elbows on his knees and cupping his fingers together, staring down at the ground. Kakashi could see the remorse in his eyes. "That's not a bad idea. I'll have to spend more time with him."

"Don't look so guilty," Kakashi scolded, taking their empty containers and throwing them into the trashcan.

"Huh?" Iruka sat up straight, blinking in surprise, almost as if he hadn't looked like he'd just shot Naruto's dog a good ten seconds ago.

"I know you feel guilty because you think you aren't there enough, but you're only ten years older than the kid and he's not your responsibility outside of the classroom," Kakashi muttered, frowning under his mask as he ran a hand through his hair. Though The Third Hokage had forbidden everyone from mentioning the Ninetails to Naruto, anyone with eyes and a brain who had known The Fourth Hokage could see that Naruto was his son. For that reason, Kakashi felt like he should've tried to play a role in Naruto's life earlier on, but he himself had been going through the trials of grief, and he'd only been fourteen when Naruto was born. By the time he had matured enough to realize that he wanted to be in Naruto's life, he felt like it had been too late. Still, Naruto should've been taken care of better. Jiraiya should've been there, one of his sets of grandparents should've been contacted, The Third Hokage should've been there. But no one really was. "His godfather isn't taking responsibility for him, his grandparents are nowhere to be seen, and there are plenty of other adults here who could've stepped up by now but haven't- including myself. Everyone associates him with the fox and that makes the situation more complicated, especially for you, so don't blame yourself for anything."

"Do you believe in the will of fire, Kakashi?" Iruka questioned, tilting his head. Kakashi shrugged. While it was a popular belief system, he had minor disagreements with it. He agreed with the teamwork aspect, taking care of others in the village, but if the will of fire were as widespread and efficient as it was supposed to be, the Uchiha wouldn't have been massacred and Naruto wouldn't be living by himself with no one to take care of himself at eleven years old. "I do. I'd like to think that I can instill that in him, and that other people will as well. He's still young... Maybe he'll find his own kind of family to fit into."

"You're doing great, you know... With everything. Not just Naruto."

"Oh..." Iruka trailed off, and Kakashi wondered if the conversation about Naruto took more of an emotional toll than it was supposed to as the brunette stood up and turned to him, forcing a small smile and waving. "Thank you- for lunch and for the advice. I should probably get to work, but I'll see you later?"

"Anytime," Kakashi smiled, waving back. "I'll see you later."

With that, Iruka left, and Kakashi found that he was unable to do anything but sit and stare at the younger man's back as he got further and further out of sight. Feeling both smitten and sentimental, Kakashi leaned back in the bench and let out a long sigh. 

What was he getting himself into?


	15. Fifteen

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Iruka Umino finds Naruto Uzumaki preparing for another prank and decides to stop the blonde, opting to take him to Ichiraku instead. They run into Kakashi Hatake, and though Iruka tries to introduce his student to his friend (?), Naruto isn't too enthused by the Jonin's presence.

Iruka Umino let out a long, drawn-out sigh as he made his way to the Hokage Stone, unsurprised to see Naruto also standing on top of it. A jacket was tied around the blonde's waist, his goggles sitting atop his forehead and a small bottle of paint in one hand with a paintbrush in the other. Iruka was glad that he'd been on a walk around the village so he could catch it before Naruto defaced the statues again, though the boy hadn't seemed to notice him yet despite the fact that the brunette was literally right behind him.

Shaking his head, the Chunin crossed his arms and cleared his throat.

"What are you up to, Naruto?"

"Gah, Iruka-Sensei!" Naruto jumped, turning around to face him. Iruka only knelt down, taking the paint and brush from Naruto's hands and putting them in the large pockets of his pants so the blonde couldn't take them back.

"Pranking again?" Iruka asked, staring down at the blonde accusingly until he noticed that Naruto looked... Different. His cheeks were a little more sunken in, he appeared a bit paler than normal, and his arms were just barely skinner than they had been before. "Wait a minute... You're looking a little thin. When's the last time you've eaten?" At that, Naruto averted his gaze. "You spent all your money on paint, huh? C'mon."

Surprisingly quiet, Naruto listened to him, and with that, they were walking side by side and away from the Hokage Mountain. When they got onto the busy streets of Konoha and began to walk through them, Iruka couldn't help but notice the stares he was getting- probably for walking with Naruto- but he was used to it by now. After all, even other teachers at the academy had criticized him for willingly teaching the Jinchuriki, but Iruka couldn't agree with them. He had his issues with the fox, sure, but Naruto wasn't the fox itself. He was just Naruto, who happened to have the fox sealed inside of him.

"Are you mad at me?" Naruto asked, looking off to the side and shoving his hands in his pockets, a frown on his face.

"As much as I hate to admit it, no, I'm not mad," Iruka admitted, knowing that acting angry and chewing Naruto out wasn't getting his point across. He had a horrible habit of allowing his emotions to cloud his judgment, but hopefully, letting his compassion shine through would make Naruto realize how much he cared, and maybe the blonde would open up to him a little more. "Just worried."

"Are you okay?"

"I'm fine. How about some ramen? And then I'll take you grocery shopping." Naruto nodded, seeming enthused. Now that his mood was a bit better, Iruka decided to bring up the main problem. "You know, you've really gotta stop acting out, Naruto. If you need anything, all you have to do is ask... Painting the Hokage Mountain isn't the way to get attention."

"Hey, Iruka-Sensei!" Naruto exclaimed, offended as he crossed his arms. "Who said I was doing it for attention!? It's just funny!"

"I was just saying," He threw his hands up passively, letting the matter go even though he was aware of the fact that Naruto had just lied through his teeth. "There's no need to get so defensive."

"Hmph."

They continued to walk for a little bit, almost at Ichiraku when Iruka heard the familiar voice that had his heart skipping a beat. "Iruka-Sensei, who's this?" When he looked up, he could see Kakashi standing in front of them. Of course, Kakashi knew who Naruto was- the brunette would never mention it, but he had noticed how Kakashi would anonymously drop groceries at Naruto's door or trail the boy when he was walking home from school to make sure he got there safe. More times than Iruka would like to admit, Naruto had been attacked by the crazy villager who had something against him because of the fox. Knowing that Kakashi was almost always around in his weird, secretive way when Iruka couldn't be was somewhat comforting to him.

Oddly enough, upon seeing Kakashi, Naruto grabbed one of Iruka's arms, practically clinging to it. A negative emotion that he couldn't quite identify was rolling off of the blonde in waves, but Iruka still tried to introduce them nonetheless.

"Naruto, this is Kakashi, and Kakashi, this is Naruto."

Naruto didn't respond, and for a moment, the three just stood there. Iruka thought back to the last time they'd seen each other- when Kakashi had brought him lunch, when they'd sat together and talked about Naruto. He wondered if he could start following the advice Kakashi had given him about spending more time with the blonde and helping him train over the summer.

"I see he isn't very fond of me."

"Yeah, wonder why..." Iruka trailed off, letting out a nervous chuckle. "Well, I'll see you later."

"See ya," Kakashi smiled under his mask and waved before walking off. Iruka didn't dare turn back to watch Kakashi's back due to the feeling of Naruto's piercing gaze on him. Sighing, he looked down at the Jinchuriki, who was still clinging to his arm.

"Naruto, what was that about?" Iruka questioned, gently patting his student's head. "You're usually pretty sociable."

Naruto let out a huff and let go of Iruka, eyebrows furrowed together in what must've been annoyance as he crossed his arms and sent Iruka a critical and questioning look. "Do you have a crush on that guy?" 

Iruka thought back to Kakashi, knowing that the answer was yes. After coming to terms with his feelings, he'd been wallowing in them, but he wasn't quite sure of how to actually solve the problem. He couldn't confess, could he? How come Kakashi had avoided him for almost a month? He'd never even gotten an answer to that when he'd asked about it. Why had the silver-haired man been acting so affectionate yet so distant? Iruka was confused, and he wasn't really sure where he stood. He loved Kakashi, sure-

'Oh, God, I love Kakashi and I don't even know what do do about it.'

"What? Haha, no, we're just friends," Iruka ̶l̶i̶e̶d̶ explained, the both of them continuing to walk. Naruto looked totally unconvinced. "Where'd you even get that idea?"

"You're blushing!" The blonde argued, accusingly pointing a finger at Iruka.

"And you're seeing things," He laughed, nervously pulling on the collar of his vest as he felt the blush spread to his neck. Naruto was seeing correctly- he just didn't want one of the loudest children he'd ever met knowing about his crush, and Naruto was a child, so he definitely wasn't old enough to be stuck with the knowledge of Iruka's love life. "Anyways..." Trailing off, he realized just how desperate he was to change the subject. "Let's just get to Ichiraku."


	16. Sixteen

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Kakashi Hatake is consumed by guilt for a reason that he won't admit to his crush, Iruka Umino. Instead of admitting it, of course, he decides to cut the younger man off completely.

Kakashi Hatake's heart was beating so fast that the noise was ringing in his ears as he walked into the apartment of no other than Iruka Umino, the brunette, who had let him in, leading him to the bedroom with a small grin.

"Another unplanned visit?" The Chunin teased, one of his hands holding Kakashi's as they made their way to the bed. "You could really-"

"Use some manners, right?" Kakashi muttered, having to suppress a laugh- he'd heard the lecture a million times, but it never failed to amuse him, and part of him thought that Iruka got a kick out of chewing him out, too. Though he didn't really mean to be an inconvenience, he wasn't one for planning things out.

Plus, he was always impulsive when it came to Iruka, and he'd decided to stop by just to see if the younger man was there. He was lucky that it was summer break for Iruka, and that it was late enough in the afternoon for the brunette to not be working the mission desk since that was something he usually did in the mornings.

"I was about to say that you could really just start planning ahead of time but sure, manners work too. What brings you by?" Kakashi blinked, staring at Iruka with a quirked eyebrow as he pulled his mask down. For the most part, they only went to each other's apartments if sex was going to be involved somehow, so either Iruka was teasing him, or he was just dense. "Okay, okay." Iruka laughed for just a moment before shaking his head, and that's when clothes started coming off.

It seemed like this was going to be one of those casual times, and Kakashi was oddly comfortable as he undressed, taking all of his clothes off one by one- headband, mask, shoes, pants, vest, shirt, underwear. By the time he was fully bare, Iruka was, too, and both men tumbled into the bed, Kakashi hating just how much the feeling of his skin brushing against Iruka's was already turning him on.

"You aren't bothered?" Kakashi asked, watching with a lazy smirk as Iruka reached into the nightstand drawer for a bottle of lube and pushed it into one of the silver-haired man's hands. "Thought you had work at the mission desk tomorrow."

"I do," Iruka laid down on his back, pulling Kakashi on top of him. The lube still in one hand, the Jonin settled in between the brunette's legs and spread them a bit. "So we'll have to make it quick."

"I can do that."

"You can stay the night," Iruka offered, watching as Kakashi impatiently poured some of the lube into one of his hands and used it to slicken his already hardening length. The brunette bit his lip, looking off to the side for a few seconds before meeting Kakashi's gaze again, making the silver-haired man's heart swell. "We can shower after, I'll make dinner, and then we can go to bed?"

It was a domestic idea in Kakashi's head- almost like they were in an actual relationship, and he had to suppress a frown upon being reminded of the fact that they weren't.

"Sounds amazing..." Sighing, Kakashi tossed the bottle to the side and made himself comfortable before positioning himself at Iruka's entrance, honestly ready to get started- maybe even desperate.

"Someone's in a rush," Iruka grinned, clearly teasing as he propped himself up onto his elbows.

Kakashi briefly wondered how the fuck it was legal for someone to be so gorgeous.

"You were the one who said to make it quick, no?"

It was relatively silent as Kakashi pushed into the brunette, the only noises in his room being the subtle slap of skin hitting skin and Iruka's soft sighs. Once it seemed like Iruka had adjusted to the stretch, Kakashi picked up the pace, trying to remain as steady as possible despite the intoxicating feeling of the shorter man's walls fluttering around him and applying just the right amount of pressure to his cock with every piston of his hips.

He was so smitten with the man underneath him that he found it hard to focus on how fast the rest of the encounter had gone.

"Damn..." A breathy moan fell from in between Iruka's lips, quickly followed by Kakashi's name, which he repeated like a mantra. The brunette threw his head back against his pillow, his chest rising and falling with every heavy breath he took as he continued to push his hips against Kakashi's. Kakashi could tell that Iruka was about to cum, so he moved to balance his weight on one arm and used his free hand to grasp the Chunin's hard length between his fingers, gently moving them from the base to the tip and repeating the motion, occasionally flicking his wrist.

It wasn't until Iruka came in his hand that he stopped fucking the younger man's pliant body, allowing the movements of his hips to come to a slow stop when he felt cum hitting the inside of his hand.

"You good, babe?" Kakashi questioned, a smirk on his face as he brought his hand to his mouth, trying to look as seductive as possible as he carefully licked the brunette's cum off of his fingers, Adam's apple bobbing when he swallowed the sticky, salty substance.

"Kakashi..." Iruka, whose face was flushed from embarrassment at Kakashi's lewd gesture, rocked his hips up into the Jonin's, urging him to move again. Kakashi was suddenly reminded that he hadn't cum when he felt his cock throb at the pressure. Still, he figured he could pull out and finish himself off pretty fast considering how close he was- he didn't really want to go too far with overstimulating the brunette if he didn't want- "Keep going."

Oh. He did want it. 

Letting out a shaky sigh, Kakashi placed his spare arm on the bed so that both were on either side of Iruka's shoulders on the mattress again as he pulled out and thrust back in. The silver-haired man could feel himself getting close again, the climax that he'd previously halted picking back up where it left off.

"Iruka-" Kakashi looked down at Iruka, and suddenly, everything hit him all at once. He wished he could've said that it was only Iruka's nails in his back or Iruka's warmth clenching down around him that made him cum, but honestly? It wasn't. No, it was the way Iruka looked up at him, brown eyes filled with something gorgeous yet unrecognizable that made them sparkle despite the lust that slightly glazed them over, a few stray strands of chocolate-hued hair sticking to his face from the light sheen of sweat that coated his forehead. The rest of the brunette's wavy locks surrounded his head on the pillow like a halo, and when those sunkissed arms were wrapped around him to pull him closer, Kakashi thought that he could've died on the spot. "Iruka, fucking hell, I-"

A tremor went through his body as he finally came, spilling inside of the younger man as a million thoughts bounced around in the back of his mind. He pulled out, plopping down on the bed next to Iruka, and the two men simply basked in the afterglow as they caught their breaths.

Guilt slapped Kakashi the moment he looked over at Iruka again.

'God, I'm terrible... He doesn't love me like that, but here I am, in love with him and using whatever this is as an emotional outlet. It has to stop.'

"Kakashi, you seem upset..." Iruka muttered, soothingly running his fingers through Kakashi's hair. Kakashi wanted to lean into the touch, to relish in it, but he knew that he had to speak up about his feelings and end whatever this mess was before it was too late. "What's up?"

"Iruka," Kakashi started, gulping as Iruka sat up, the blankets pooling in his lap.

"Hm?"

"We can't do this anymore."

The room immediately went cold.

"Wait, what? Did I do something wrong?" Iruka let go of him, pulling away with an expression that made Kakashi immediately regret his words. Still, though, he continued, feeling like he owed it to the brunette to get his point across.

"God, no, you really need to stop blaming yourself for everything," Kakashi let out a bitter laugh as he tossed his legs over the side of the bed, feet on the cold, wooden floors as he stood up. "You didn't do anything wrong-" He started, slowly redressing himself. Iruka only sat there, giving him a perplexed stare. "Rather than that, you did everything right, and I know you're only in this for the physical reasons, but it's gotten to a point where..." Once he'd gotten all of his clothes back on, he trailed off, rubbing the bridge of his nose between his thumb and pointer finger. "Well, I'm invested in you- more than physically, and I can't even begin to explain how scary that is. I don't think I've felt this way towards anyone before, and as much as I hate to admit it, I'm scared. I don't know what to do," He admitted, hating the feeling of being so vulnerable in front of someone else, but wanting to be honest. "And I feel bad for getting my emotional kicks out of this when I know you don't feel the same way."

"Kakashi..." Iruka started, trailing off. It seemed like he was about to stand up, but Kakashi gave a dismissive wave of his hand, heading towards the bedroom window and opening it.   
"You don't have to be nice about this, Iruka. I know you can't really help it- it's just in your nature to be kind to people, but... Don't fake anything for my sake. I've probably said too much, so I'm just gonna leave. I'll see you around."

"Wh-"

With that, he left, trying his best to ignore all of the feelings that plagued his mind and caused tears to wall up in his eyes as his feet hit the dirt road.   
He began to run, ignoring all of the stares he received from the other villagers and praying that he'd be able to escape Iruka before the brunette was able to find him.  
Would Iruka even care enough to chase after him, though?

Kakashi shook his head, trying to ignore the thought as his chest started to hurt, his heart beating with the effort it took him to run at the speed he was maintaining.

Maybe if he ran far enough, he could escape his feelings, too.


	17. Seventeen

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Frustrated with the way Kakashi Hatake had decided to avoid him after confessing his feelings without any warning whatsoever, Iruka Umino decides to track the older man down and explain his own feelings while he still can. Or, in which Kakashi is overly avoidant and ridiculously oblivious.

Iruka Umino was beyond pissed as he quietly slid open the window of no other than Kakashi Hatake, a huff leaving his mouth. He used the opening to tumble into Kakashi's bedroom, and unsurprisingly, the silver-haired man had an expression of shock, which normally would've been covered by his mask.

It was almost five in the morning, so it made sense that Kakashi would be surprised by his sudden appearance. 

Three days prior, the Jonin had confessed his love without any warning whatsoever after one of his impromptu visits, and then, he'd left as soon as he possibly could, not even giving Iruka the chance to respond. The brunette had thrown some clothes on as soon as possible, running out of his apartment and through the village, earning some stares like he was an insane person as he'd frantically searched for Kakashi to no avail. In the following days, Iruka had tried to run into Kakashi, but it hadn't happened.

Eventually, he'd realized why he couldn't find Kakashi- the silver-haired man was avoiding him so he wouldn't have to deal with confrontation. During the day, he'd probably been working or hiding somewhere in the village since he was never at his house or any of the local places he usually frequented. During the night, he'd probably been occupying himself with extra missions. So, Iruka came to the conclusion that the only time he'd be able to catch Kakashi would be during the early hours of the morning.

Desperate, he'd decided that Kakashi's window would be the best option- the older man always left it unlocked, and Iruka knew that with how avoidant he was being, he wouldn't have opened the door.

So, now, as he walked up to the silver-haired man and grabbed him by the collar of his shirt, pulling him out of the chair he'd been sitting in, he was pissed- pissed that Kakashi had confessed his feelings and cut things off so abruptly after hiding them for so long, pissed that Kakashi had run off before he'd gotten the chance to say it back, pissed that Kakashi had been avoiding him and drawing this out for much longer than it really needed to be. 

Then again, he realized he was being a hypocrite. He'd hidden his feelings, too. He hadn't known how to handle them. But, he knew that if he had ever gathered the guts to confess beforehand, he would've had the decency to wait for a response.

Kakashi was stronger than him and he knew that, hence why he was surprised that the Jonin hadn't pulled away yet, still allowing Iruka to hold him by his collar.

"Kakashi-"

"Iruka, I thought I made myself clear already," Kakashi spoke, face screaming defeat as he pointed to the window with a weak smile. "Also, that's kinda my move."

Frustrated, Iruka released his grip and crossed his arms over his chest, face burning red as he watched Kakashi smooth his shirt out.

"Are you stupid?" 

"Are you?" Kakashi retaliated, also crossing his arms as he quirked an eyebrow.

"I like you, Kakashi," Iruka admitted, dropping his arms and placing a hand over his chest as relief flooded through him. Kakashi loved him. He loved Kakashi, and he'd finally gotten the chance to tell the Jonin that. There was no reason for them to not be able to develop an actual relationship. "It's not just physical for me. Don't you get that by now? If you would've waited for me to respond the other night, you would've known that I love you back, but you thought that it'd be a good idea to run away instead."

"Oh..." Kakashi let out a small chuckle, appearing somewhat guilty. Thankfully, though, his posture had relaxed more since Iruka had barged in, the tension seeming to have left his body. Iruka figured that he was relieved, too. "Well, that's a pleasant surprise."

"Just a pleasant surprise?" 

"Don't make me embarrass myself more than I already have," Kakashi sighed, taking Iruka's hands in his and interlacing their fingers. "You know I love you."

"How long?" Iruka asked, smiling when Kakashi pressed a kiss against his forehead.

"How long...? Well, I'm not really sure. I came to the realization that I had this repressed crush on you prior to all of this and that's why I started the whole friends with benefits thing, and that probably sounds really fucked up, but-"

"Yeah, no, me too," Iruka cut the older man off, almost in disbelief that their situations had been so similar. "I had this weird interest in you that I couldn't really understand until this happened, and it kinda just hit me like a brick in the face that I'm in love with you."

"God, I'm in love with you," Kakashi reiterated, letting go of Iruka's hands, only to rest his own on the brunette's back. He allowed his palms to drift further and further down, nimble fingers brushing over Iruka's clothed skin until they reached his ass. He knew what Kakashi wanted, but he also didn't know where his ninken were- they weren't in the room, but this hadn't been planned at all, and Iruka wouldn't be surprised if they were somewhere in the house. Considering that they were basically humans in dog bodies, he was positive that he didn't want them to hear what Kakashi was clearly getting at with his suggestive movements. "You're so cute."

"Kakashi..." Kakashi leaned in for a kiss, but Iruka only laughed, raising a hand and holding a finger to the taller man's soft lips, which earned him a playful frown. "Aren't your ninken here?"

"Oh, right, they are... They're all napping in the living room." Kakashi sighed, pulling back. "Wanna just cuddle instead?"

"Yeah," Iruka took Kakashi's hand again, feeling his heart flutter as he kicked his shoes off, removing his headband and setting it down on the older man's desk. "That sounds great." With that, they both walked to Kakashi's bed, tumbling into it with the both of them giggling along the way. As soon as their bodies hit the mattress, Kakashi was flipping the brunette onto his back, moving to lay on top of him. "You're heavy," Iruka muttered, the pressure of Kakashi's head on his chest, upper body resting on his stomach, and lower body between his legs, all very noticeable but somehow comforting. Kakashi went to move away, but Iruka pulled him back, relishing in the smell of his cologne. "It's nice... I love you."

Kakashi settled again, and Iruka moved a hand to run his fingers through the Jonin's hair. 

"I love you, too."


	18. Eighteen

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> Two and a half years have passed, and things are going surprisingly well. Kakashi Hatake is blatantly aware of the fact that with every day that passes, he likes- no, loves- Iruka Umino and the little family they've started to build together even more.

They'd been together for two and a half years.

While Kakashi didn't really see the point in celebrating anniversaries, he would be lying if he said he didn't keep track of every day he had the privilege of dating Iruka Umino.

...Nine hundred twelve days and twelve hours, to be exact.

Their relationship had flowed pretty normally after they'd finally talked things out and made everything official. Their friends knew and accepted it, and Naruto... Well, he'd learned to live with it.

Speaking of Naruto, Kakashi figured that the Jinchuriki was the only reason he'd woken up to an empty bed.

A year into their relationship, after Naruto had failed the graduation exam again, Iruka and Kakashi had decided to buy a house and move in together and had ultimately moved Naruto in as well. The blonde shouldn't have been living alone in the first place, and he clearly needed extra help with school.

Of course, having the eleven-year-old in their house wasn't all sunshine and rainbows. He'd hated Kakashi, presumably because the silver-haired man was taking a lot of Iruka's attention (even though Iruka provided Naruto with plenty of attention, it was understandable that Naruto would lash out), he'd acted out in class all the time and some minor behavioral issues, and worst of all, he had nightmares. Terrible nightmares... Nightmares like Kakashi and Iruka had. Nightmares that an eleven-year-old shouldn't have been dealing with. It wasn't uncommon for Iruka to have to comfort the blonde through the night.

He was twelve now, so he'd adjusted, and he was doing better with everything. He was nicer to Kakashi, both because he'd grown used to his presence and because the Jonin was his new squad leader following his graduation from the academy. He was a more competent student. He still acted out, sure, but he was making progress.

...And, he still had nightmares. That was the one thing that hadn't really improved.

So, when Kakashi had woken up at three in the morning to feel that the bed was cold and that he was tucked into the blankets particularly tight, he'd known what happened. Iruka had woken up at some point because of one of Naruto's nightmares, slipped out of bed, pulled the blankets over Kakashi to make sure that he was warm, and then left the room.

He couldn't really sleep when Iruka wasn't there, so he figured that he may as well get up and make sure that they were both okay. So, he tossed the blankets off of himself and stood up, padding out of his bedroom and down the hall to where Naruto's was. 

He leaned in the doorway, sighing as he took in the sight in front of him. Naruto was sleeping in his bed, Iruka splayed out on the wooden floor, staring at the ceiling, which was littered in bright yellow glow stars. When Naruto had moved in, Iruka had put a ton of effort into encouraging the blonde to customize his room and providing the money necessary for him to do so- probably a gesture to make him feel more welcome. So, the ceiling had glow stars, the walls were almost entirely covered in posters, and there was a messy shelf in the corner where Naruto kept most of his ninja tools and books.

Upon noticing Kakashi's presence, Iruka sat up on the floor, looking at him with a tired smile. 

"Hey," His voice was low and quiet, probably to prevent Naruto from waking up. Team Seven had a mission in the morning, so the Jinchuriki would definitely need as much sleep as he could get.

"Hey, love," Kakashi spoke, offering a small smile as well. It was weird to be in Naruto's presence without his mask on, but then again, the blonde was asleep. "You two okay?"

"Yeah... He just had another nightmare. I woke up a couple of hours ago and had a bad feeling, so I came to check on him to make sure he was doing alright, and I ended up waking him up from it. He wanted me to stay in here with him."

"I'll be right back."

Knowing that Iruka wouldn't move from that spot until he had to go to work in the morning, Kakashi decided that he'd go get something to put between the brunette and the hard floor so he could actually sleep comfortably. The trip to their shared bedroom was quick, and he returned with a few comforters and pillows, which he laid out on the floor by Naruto's bed. Iruka sighed in relief and laid down across half of the makeshift bed, Kakashi joining him and taking the other half. 

"Thanks, Kakashi," Iruka tossed an arm over his waist, pausing for a moment- probably to listen to Naruto's obnoxiously loud snoring to make sure that he was still asleep. You could usually tell that the blonde was about to wake up when the snoring was suddenly cut off. Thankfully, it resumed, so Iruka continued to talk. You're a life-saver. I know you have to take Naruto and your team on a mission in the morning, though, so you should go back to bed. I don't want you to sleep on the floor- it's bad for your back."

"It's bad for your back, too."

"I know... I'll make you both breakfast in the morning and put it in the fridge before I leave," Kakashi sighed again. Iruka had to leave earlier than they did so he could get to the academy, so Naruto would wake up alone, and then walk into the kitchen to see Kakashi, which would inevitably disappoint him. "But can you make sure he's okay when he gets up? Make him stay home if he's not feeling well?"

"Iruka," Kakashi spoke, tone stern. The brunette was worrying a little too much. He moved to hold the younger man's spare hand, gently stroking his thumb along the rough, tan skin of the back of it.

"I know, I know... I'm just worried."

"It's okay to worry but try not to do it so much. One of these days, you're gonna give yourself a heart attack. I can already feel your blood pressure rising."

"Shush," Iruka muttered, clearly embarrassed as Kakashi pulled one of the blankets over both of them. "Are you actually gonna sleep here?"

"Why not?" He asked, already knowing the answer.

"You know Naruto won't like it if he wakes up and sees you with me."

That much was true, but thankfully, the dynamic between him and Naruto was better than it had been at first. Now, instead of seeming incredibly jealous and despising him, Naruto would probably just make some childish comment about Iruka having bad tastes in men.

"He'll live."

"I guess you're right..." Iruka sighed, snuggling closer to him. "One of the things I've always liked about you is that you're so relaxed about everything. It's funny that it kinda pissed me off when I first met you... And when we had that fight before the Chunin exams."

Kakashi preferred not to think about that fight, which they'd had because he'd recommended Naruto for the Chunin exams before Iruka thought that they were ready. It had only lasted a day, and they'd managed to talk through it, but it didn't change how angry Iruka had been at him over it. He blinked, pushing the fight to the back of his mind as he pressed a kiss against the corner of his lover's lips.

"I like you," Kakashi whispered, interlacing their fingers. "I like everything about you- love everything about you."

"I love you, too," Iruka smiled, giving his hand a gentle squeeze. "But we should sleep. Good night."

"Good night."


End file.
